Dear Roger: The Monkey Is Upside Down

The move into the new apartment has been held up due to maintenance taking a little longer than expected. All the upgrades required a lot of man power that would have been available if there hadn't been about 100 other things going on in the complex at the same time, so instead of moving this weekend, I have been sitting in my old apartment, among the stacked boxes of my things, my artwork and my decor trying not to lose my shit.
I am a neat freak. I admit it and I am kind of proud of it. Yes, I have 4 kids. But, my 4 kids know that mom expects them to clean up after themselves. In my house there is a place for everything and I really like everything to be in its place, but right now? Right now there is crap everywhere. There are stray monkeys staring at me from the coffee table, odd socks laying on my book shelf, art work stacked all over the dog crate, dishes in boxes on chairs and fans running full blast blowing tepid air all over everything.
Yeah, its hot. Its hot and muggy and miserable and we are all grumpy. I've had a story in my head for almost a week and no place to write it. The table was put out for donation because we aren't moving it to the new apartment. We are rearranging and redecorating and changing some things around I just want my life back in order so I can write the damn story and get things back to rights before Sticky turns 12 on Wednesday, that is going to be a big deal. My Stickyman is going to be 12...amazing. Im still in awe of him every day.
When he was born I was a wreck for a while, and seeing him in the NICU was tough on me. I felt like every needle in him, every tube every time he slid backwards was a failure on my part as a mother. Even though I had done everything right, I felt judged because he was born with Downs. Those first few years were soo hard and so scary, but he had come so far and most of the funny stories I have to tell are because of him.
The poop in the heater vent, the peeing off the front porch in his snow boots and boxers, how he is able to tame rampaging hounds with just a click of his tongue and a look, his singing of Reaper and Moves Like Jagger, his God awful sense of humor and flirting with every woman he encounters, showing me his butt pimples, moonings, and his sense of style. He has made my life soo much better and brighter that I wouldn't trade a moment of it.
I managed to get him the one thing he has been begging for since I got him back, an X-Box 360, and though I am rabidly anti-video game, they are actually good for him since they help him develop his hand eye coordination and small muscle control and with most of the stuff I insist on getting being educational, his speech and reading. He is going to lose his mind on Wednesday when he gets to unwrap it and the Kinect that goes with it and I cant wait to see it. He came to me last night before he went to bed and he said, "Dont forget mom, 3 days! August 8! I turn 12! I want an X-box 360 with Lego Batman 2 and Oh, yeah! Cupcakes and Chicken!" Moms got it handled Stickyman, even if everything else is upside down and sideways.