Special Delivery

The day was not getting any better for me. The chores need to be done along with the shopping for the week. The paychecks were not getting any more, but the cost of products sure was rising. The exact amount of food costs a lot more. All I could do was wait for the weekends, which seemed to be continuously robbed of me. My mind could not settle to get through the day's many tasks. Everything was a mess between the kids and my husband, all with brown hair. Plus, if my parents decided to come over, I wanted the house to look at least half decent. My mind still wandered, yet the days never seemed to last long enough. I finally cleaned the toys off the floor to get my vacuuming started since everyone was off to the park. It made life more manageable when I could just clean alone. Chaos was the ruler of this house between work, the economy, and my family. I did love my family, but at times they could be more challenging to keep up with. I was even more annoyed when I heard an odd thump at the front door.

I only had so much time before the house would be noisy, and the children will find their toys back on the floor instead of in the toy box. I quickly checked the door to see if anything had been left. I spotted a delivery drone flying away from my door as I opened it. I then looked down and found a strange package on the porch. It was addressed to me, but no return address or any other markings. It was odd to see that. My first thought was it a bomb or a dangerous package. These days anything is possible, and I finally noticed a number to call to return on the side. I dialed my cell, and not five minutes later, a drone came by to pick up the package.

Before I knew it, my porch was clear of strange packages. I then went back inside to finish my cleaning. The incident was forgotten in a hurry to vacuum and mop the floors. If I had the time to clean the bathrooms. Most of the house was clean when I heard my darling children enter with their high-pitched screams. So, to his dismay, I left one bathroom to be cleaned and warned Jake that he must keep them occupied just a little longer. The bathroom was as filthy as the living room. Toys were scattered in the bathtub, and the toilet needed a more powerful cleaner to get that smell out. It took a little longer, but the area looked cleaner but not as clean as I would like, not that my family cared. They could live in filth and not even notice.

I came downstairs to finally relax, only to see all my hard work gone. My little boy, Chris, was in his troublesome threes. Something did not go his way and his little blue eyes filled with tears of another minor tragedy. Just then, I realized that I still needed to start dinner. It was supposed to be some meatloaf, but now there was no time for the prep. My mind on these busy days is gone. I lost my focus, and now we just had to order some pizza, and all the kids loved it. I just looked at my husband, who called them while I put away all the cleaning supplies. With three kids and a husband, my life keeps getting busier. At the same time, I could not see another life without them. I was waiting for the pizza delivery guy to come when the same package from earlier arrived by a drone. I was about to call the number on the side when my husband Jake interrupted. I was trying to understand why some random package would be delivered to me. I was so flustered that I called the number anyway, and the drone returned to pick up the package. He just asked why not just open it to see what it was. I just looked at him and wondered why he was curious about it. Before any discussion was done, the pizza was delivered. Well, my oldest, JJ, was just looking hungry, and I could not deny my child some dinner. We then headed inside to eat. Everything seemed to settle, and the bedtimes appeared to erase the memory of the mystery package. It was already a stressful day, and all I wanted was a quiet night and then get through the next day with a day off from my crazy life.

The next day I prepared the day for the youngest since my oldest was in school and seemed like he was not old enough. I wanted to make sure that JJ was on the bus. As he waved goodbye, I started to go back to the house. The same drone returned the package on my porch and flew away. It was just sitting there with the plain exterior. I then called the same number, and the drone came back to take it back. I went back inside to care for the younger ones who were not old enough for school. They were just playing with their toys and, of course, bothering each other.

I could not wait till nap time, and more cleaning could be commenced. Even trying to get anything done is impossible. My daughter and son were constantly pulling out everything I picked up. My house looks like it is lived in. It was a few hours of my busy life that it was time for a nap for all. My oldest finally came home from school, and Jake did too. The house was whole again, and I did have time for my meatloaf tonight. It was a better day since most of the cleaning was done, at least for this week. I even did it while the younger ones were occupied with other things. It was a much better day, and I did enjoy the time off since work started the next day. Everything was going well when I heard the drone again outside my door. I even saw a note on the top of the box this time stating that it could not be returned and was safe. I had no other reason than to take it inside. I was gentle just in case it was dangerous. My husband was just smiling at me and started to laugh. He only asked if I was finally going to open it. I just gave him a look of irritation and walked away. He answered, "why don't you just give it a look instead of ignoring it." I wondered who had sent it and the reason for the secret.

I walked over to the delivery and slowly found where it had opened. After opening, it had a special delivery card with a set of puzzles. I have been good at puzzles and enjoying the evening with my children asleep. The first was a word search that would reveal a message to do next. I finished the first one which leads to a clue, to the next one labeled hint 2. It did give an odd answer of the place to meet is unforgettable where the smell of coffee and donuts while in a rush. These were the remaining letters from the word search. Hint 2 was the riddle version, and after some thought, I did come up with the answer. The riddle read the grass is green, the water is constantly flowing, and the place is ever going; where could I be? The answer was the park. This was added to the answer to the first puzzle. Though it seemed like they were not connecting at all. This was getting interesting but looking at the time made it impossible to finish since there was work tomorrow at my mundane job. I did promise to work on it tomorrow once the kids were in bed and could not wait to finally do something fun and relaxing. It was amazing to have a clear mind and some time alone. I knew we both needed to go to bed, plus the children were not waking up. I hid the remaining puzzles and then went off to bed.

The next day I dropped off the kids at daycare in the morning and saw the tears in the little ones' eyes. I just wanted a better life, but we both needed to work to keep enough income to survive. The day just dragged as my office job and countless phone calls ran together. The day never did seem to end but at least was only eight hours. It was too long and ready to be in a higher office job. I always needed to learn how to ingratiate myself with the higher bosses. Finally, it was time to head to the daycare center for the younger two when they were ready to greet me with smiles. I enjoy seeing them so happy, and their precious hugs mean the world. So, we headed home to meet up with my oldest boy coming home from school. My husband had seen him on the bus, and I saw him come home. They are all growing up too quickly. The days might be busy, but it was worth my wonderful family. The night did fly by with dinner and homework for the oldest. It was exhausting, but so was each day with children. So my husband took out the package with the puzzles, and I opened the envelope labeled hint 3, which was a crossword about my personal life. I filled in the letters and wondered how they knew about my life. It listed things I liked and things I experienced.

The jumbo section of the letters spelled a set of words going down from all my answers stating the dove's flight above the castle. The hints did not match the previous two leads to the final puzzle. I then went to hint 4, which was a cryptogram. I was at ease since I had finished the entire book of them. I then looked at the most used letters and slowly started guessing the answer. Eventually, the letters came out as a message that read the place of the sunset, the roaring waves going by, only the site for the first time. The area will never be forgotten. It was late. Time to get to bed and another long day at work. So, the last two puzzles had to wait for another day.

It was another morning of fighting with all three of my kids. Each one was acting up for some strange reason. I could have used more help from Jake being at work early than I leave. So, I wrangled, and eventually, all they were dressed, much to their dismay. I still had to get to work when the bus finally came for JJ. I then put the younger but angry ones in their car. They voiced their concerns, but I could only focus on getting to the daycare center. It was already stressful when they marched and had no kisses for mommy. Well, it was one of those crazy mornings only to be greeted by a crazy day. Work could have been better with the chaos between the phone calls and trying to get my job done. It just seemed to drag.

I was happy to be done and head back home. Jake would pick up the kids today since it was extended hours today. I was delighted to be done and head back home. Jake would pick up the kids today since it was extended hours today. My work was nagging when I noticed it was finally time to leave. So, I prepared my work for tomorrow before heading home. I hoped my husband had fed our young kids and maybe cooked dinner. I missed my babies; though they were growing, they were my babies. The house was chaos, and the younger two were screaming while the oldest was angry. Jake seemed relieved since he was furious when they were misbehaving. After some wrangling and they were finally off to bed. This was a relief to both of us. I was ready for some downtime.

I wanted to get to my puzzles. There were only two left to figure out who sent these to me. Hint 5 was a sudoku puzzle, and this one is with letters. I did use the process of my elimination. The words started to fill out, containing one with my children's names. My eyes started to tear when I thought of them so small. The clues were not fully connecting, but there was still one before the final answer. I was about to start Hint 6 when my youngest came downstairs and wanted something to drink. He gently asked what I was doing and lied, saying it was a boring adult game. He hopped back to his bedroom and opened the last hint. It was a cryptogram crossword, and the letters had to be filled in according to the placement of the letters. It has been some time since I did one of these. The doubling of letters and the typical arrangement helped get me through the puzzle. Finally, they put the letters in the corresponding numbers. There was a phrase at the bottom with the numbers. I filled in the letters, and the quote came out. It stated, do you know how much I love you? Ever since I first saw you, I have loved you. I had to get your attention and then ask you to marry me in a beautiful place. We even saw the doves fly over the stone wall on our special day. We had a wonderful time on the beaches of Mexico. After all our beautiful children were born, it made our life better. Our anniversary is coming up, and I wanted to make it memorable.

It was more than I expected from Jake. I started to cry and remark despite the horrible first date. He smiled and answered," Meg, I was nervous because you are beautiful with your pretty blonde hair" he held me, and I told him, "I love you so much." "You have been so stressed with everything, but I wanted you to have a good anniversary. So I booked a long weekend away for some time away. My parents can watch the children while we are out." He said with a smile and piercing blue eyes. I could only respond, "you purposely cut the line in the coffee shop." He just grinned. All the clues made sense, after all. I remember that day he cut me off and made me and made me late for work. The park is where he invited me when we were dating. I was utterly shocked to see him on his knee. The wedding day was beautiful, and the two doves made the day. The beaches were the highlight of the honeymoon though we were not alone for long. I wish for a break from my little ones, but I would not know how to live without them. It was a lovely gesture, and glad I found such a wonderful man.