In a couple hours I'm going to have to pull off another one of my "have to be in two places at the same time" tricks. Of course, that translates into "we'll be late for at least one thing, and one child will be unhappy."

Usually when our children have sports practices at the same time in different locations, my husband and I split the duties and meet back at the house at evening's end. But tonight, he has to work late, and I'm left to figure out a way to make it all happen.

There's only one real solution: getting help. I've put a call into to another soccer parent to see if my daughter can get a ride home, but I have no real Plan B if that doesn't pan out. So cross your fingers they check the answering machine before heading out the door.

If it was me, I'd never remember to do that before scrambling out to practice. In fact, I never even make it home. I asked the kids this morning to pack everything they needed for practice in the car, so the backseat is full of baseball bats and gloves, a soccer ball, cleats, etc.

I'll be escaping the office at the last minute (and hoping for green lights and no traffic) to get across town to their after-school program. I'll grab their book bags and toss them their clothes to change in the bathroom there at the school. Then we'll race to the car and off to one of their sports fields. We might have to flip a coin to see which one gets to be on time.