Here I am, sitting at my computer desk, trying to write, while my children are screaming at each other for “stealing” clothes from each other’s closets. 

I don’t regret having children, but sometimes I wish I had given birth to them with more years in between and apart. The twin gene doesn’t run in my family, but I can confidently say that having children so close together in age is double the trouble. My husband and I basically endured screaming infancy, terrible twos, and angsty adolescence at twice the regular intensity. 

I love dysfunctional family sitcoms like Arrested Development. They’re a family business with a snarky matriarch, a criminal father, and three incompetent adult children among a total of four. 

They make me feel a little better about the chaos that goes on over here. 

We recently had quite an icky ordeal thanks to my daughters who do not understand the limits of what should and should not go down the sink or toilet.

(If my daughters are reading this: I love you, but I do question your judgment at times.)

Alas, this is the life I chose when I became a mother, and I wouldn’t trade it for the world. I am in a case of arrested development; I want my children to hurry up and grow up—but I’m not sure if they do!

My daughters will clog the drain with hair that should have been caught by the shower drain sieve, which they always forget to use. My daughters will clog the drain while washing the dishes, by pouring residual oil down the drain instead of first emptying it into the bin. I also suspect that they use way too much hairspray and mousse in their hair, which isn’t a problem until they wash it out, and the stickiness of those hair products inevitably becomes a plumbing issue.

I know that drain unclogging liquid is always an option, and I’ll usually opt for the fastest and cheapest option. But the phenomenon of a mother’s intuition is a gift I try not to ignore. Something in my gut told me it wasn’t a good idea. I went online, and low and behold, I read some pretty shocking and horrifying stories about the liquid splashing back from a clogged drain and onto a loved one. There was no way I would take the risk with something so corrosive.

I knew I had to call the professionals and let them do exactly what they are trained and experienced at doing. I asked my mommy support chat group and they all recommended California Plumbing, Chula Vista plumbers who offer various types of plumbing services with amazing Yelp reviews to back it up.

I highly recommend their services to anyone who has a plumbing issue (or several), especially those who are busy and working mothers. California Plumbing was able to unclog the upstairs bathroom drains within the day, and I have already scheduled an appointment for them to inspect our water heater. Perhaps it is time for an upgrade to something more energy-efficient or eco-friendly. 

Arrested development and motherhood, one day at a time.