Yesterday completely got away from me. The day was simply "cray cray" (I heard a guy on "Say Yes to the Dress: Bridesmaids Addition" use this phrase the other day and immediately knew I had to incorporate it into my blog somehow). From the moment my feet hit the floor in the morning til my head hit the pillow at night, I was physically moving. It started with the regular routine of getting kids fed, dressed and out the door on time-- a feat that is not for the faint of heart. Even Lucas had school, so it was getting ready times three. Once they were all at school, I ran to two different stores to buy some groceries for the weekend as well as party favors for the girls' upcoming birthday party (tomorrow!). Then I headed home and quickly gave my house a once over clean up job. I made my bed, picked up stray toys, unloaded the dishwasher, wiped down counter tops and even managed to vacuum the living room floor. Next up, I was hosting lunch for three of my friends, so sandwiches were made and soon my doorbell was ringing. After lunch, it was time to do another quick clean up and head to pick up not just Lucas, but the baby boy I babysit for as well. The boys are at two different schools, thankfully close to each other, and soon I was home with them both. Before I knew it the girls arrived home and it was time for after school snacks, a backpack check (no homework! phew!), and then I moved into the next phase called "getting ready to have company."
Mike's sister, Rachel. her husband, Juan and their daughter Velda were driving up from Dallas to spend the night. I quickly threw dinner in the slow cooker, then headed off to put clean sheets on the girls' beds. Eventually I dropped my sweet babysitting boy off with his mom and came back home literally as my sister-in-law and her crew were walking up to the door. Rachel and Juan are running in the Dallas Marathon this coming Sunday, so they flew to Dallas from their home in Long Island, rented a car and drove the 3.5 hours up to OKC to drop their daughter off with us for the weekend. We'll be driving down to Dallas on Sunday to deliver her safe and sound to her parents again. It was great to see them, and my kids love their cousin so much and were thrilled to have a playmate. The crazy running and screaming of childhood play instantly began. Once Mike arrived home, we had to get ready to head to Lucas' school for his Christmas program. His class was singing two songs. We put our little man in a button up shirt, khaki pants and a tie. He looked so dapper, and he did a wonderful job performing. My dad and Sally even made it to the show! Afterwards, we came home and got the kids ready for bed and then crashed on the couch. We tried to have a conversation with Rachel and Juan, but poor Mike kept falling asleep and I'm afraid I sounded mentally unstable because I was so tired. We gave up and all went to bed at 11:00. It was a full and busy day fo sho! In all that craziness, we just didn't get to our act of kindness for the day. It was ok though, because we just did two things today!
First we wrote a note and took it to the park down the street from us. We taped it in a secret location and left it for someone to find. It is addressed like this: "To: You. Yes, you at the park today." Inside we wrote out Jeremiah 29:11, "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "Plans to prosper you and not harm you, to give you hope and a future." Hopefully those words will minister to the person who finds it. Later in the afternoon, we baked some chocolate-chip pumpkin muffins as well some Rice Krispie treats to take to our local firestation. The firemen were just sitting down to eat dinner when we knocked on their door. This was slightly out of my comfort zone, so I was already sweating profusely under my wool coat. But I had told the kids we would do this and so we did. I told the men thank you for their service to our community and that they were the unit who responded when my mother passed away eighteen months ago. They were very appreciative and two of the men offered to take my kids (and my awesome niece) back to see the firetruck. The kids got to even climb into the truck and turn the lights on. Before we left, we took a picture with the firemen (I will hopefully post it someday). When we got back in the car, the kids all declared it was "the coolest day ever!"
Tomorrow I have a quick, but fun act of kindness planned. It involves a candy cane and an ATM machine. Stay tuned!
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