I just knew...

My 6 months of state unemployment insurance ended this week, so it was time to head into the unemployment office to file for my federal extension. Going to the unemployment office with two kids is pretty much like a set-up for a joke, right? Going in with this attitude allowed me to pretty much laugh at the hilarity that ensued.

I arrived at 2:30 having woken Little A up from her nap - the office closes at 4 p.m. so I was hoping that it would be less busy in the afternoon. Ha! I took a number from the kiosk - 45. They were serving number 26 and from a few questions to my neighbors, many of them had been waiting for 2 or more hours...yikes. I contemplated leaving since it would be my luck to wait an hour and a half and then not be served. But I decided to take my chances.

I came woefully unprepared. I managed to find a notebook and some pens which kept the girls busy for about 30 seconds. Till Little A started using ME as a notebook. No more pen. I found two pieces of candy which took up another minute. Little A had grabbed a princess purse from the car and started emptying the contents. Of all the toys that we have in our house, do you want to guess what just happened to be in the purse? A pink plastic SYRINGE from her doctor set. Yes, folks, a syringe. I'm sure I looked like mother of the year. She also had a big plastic fake lipstick which she kept inexplicably pretending to put on her forearm. The guy behind me leaned over and asked if she thought it was deodorant. What the hell? What 1 year old uses deodorant?

Big A was getting antsy and started people-watching. A large woman came in and sat down. Big A came up to me and said in a normal speaking voice, "Mommy, why doesn't that woman fit in the chair?" I quickly shushed her and told her it wasn't nice to talk about people. Ahhh. Then she started imitating the man behind us (deodorant man), mimicking him talking on his cell phone and putting his head into his hands.

Finally after 1 hour and 15 minutes, our number was called. I went to the counter and luckily the process was pretty easy and I was able to sign the papers I needed in between yelling at the girls to stop hitting each other, running away, whining and pulling at me. I now have 20 more weeks of federal unemployment benefits.

I have to say that the unemployment office is a pretty humbling place. It doesn't matter who you are, you are in the same boat as every other person in there and no one is particularly happy to be there. But in the end, I'm very grateful that unemployment insurance exists and gives us what we need to get by in these tough times.

Hopefully something great comes along in the next 20 weeks. Until then, we are going to make the most of our summer. It may well be the last summer I have off work for a long while.