Mama Said There'd Be Days Like This

      There are days when you can't even write a blog post, because you have to keep going to discipline your child for the same thing, repeatedly.  This is one of those days.  Actually, with Lily, it has been one of those weeks.  Sadly, today at the post office, she had one of her worst melt-downs ever.  We had to go get Bella's passport, and Lily did great for so much of the time.  Until she didn't.  And when she was bad, she was very very bad.  Even when the kind, helpful lady brought her a sucker, a sticker and a coloring book and told her how pretty she was, she continued to scream and flail.  I was thinking, "She is not pretty on the inside."  Actually, I was so shaken that I was actually shaking, because I was so angry and paralyzed by the fact that so many people got to bear witness to this traumatic moment for us all.  Fortunately, Bella was angelic in her car seat, and we did get the paperwork submitted and now we are home, where we can have our trauma in private.



      This picture is not from today, but it captures what I have been seeing all day.  Some times there are bad days.  Yesterday was not all that bad, but did have some rough moments.  As I was leaving the post office that no longer accepted passport applications (though it said it did on the website, and I wish that I could fine them for my inconvenience), I felt something dripping on my foot.  Never a good sign, when it is not raining.  I looked down to realize that I had ruined another purse by filling it with Diet Dr. Pepper.  When John found out, he said, "Fool me once . . . "  Good thing I always get purses at Target - makes the price tag of filling them with Diet Dr. Pepper a little less painful.  Thankfully, it really didn't ruin anything else.

      And though I would not recommend my day to others, I have realized that John is actually having a worse day.  The power has been partially out at Chick-fil-A today, which has wrecked all kinds of havoc on our business, even causing us to have to close temporarily.  And since the phone line is also down, he has been using his cell phone all day, which has been continuing to put people on hold randomly.  If that won't make you go absolutely nuts, I am not sure what will.  And, he got pulled over by the police this morning in the middle of the chaos - fortunately, feeding police officers for free does have its own set of benefits which in this case include being let go without a ticket.

      Days like this remind me how easy it can be to get caught up in the struggles of our everyday existence.  I have to be so careful to remember that we are healthy and provided for far beyond our needs.  Some people lost their lives in the storm that came through here last night, and even though we slept through the tornado sirens, we are safe - thank you, Lord.  And I have to remind myself that the Lord will not give me more than I can bear - so he must think that I can bear a challenging two-year-old. At least, he must know that it will draw me closer to him, because I certainly feel at a loss.  I have a lot to learn, and days like this are a good reminder of the lessons God still has to teach us.