Mission Accomplished

My alarm clock went off at 4:30 this morning. I stumbled to the kitchen, hit the coffee pot power button, and started getting dressed.


My mind kept discouraging me- telling me that my foot would probably start hurting, my knees would kill me at the end. Then it started telling me I didn't train properly, that I may not even finish, that Nashville has some killer hills.

I told my mind to shut up.

And kept telling it to shut up until I crossed the finish line for the 13.1 mile race in 2:36.

Short Term Relationship

Maddie made a new friend yesterday. His name was Casey. She was very excited about meeting him and wanted to show him off to everyone.

She made him a sign. Complete with hearts and "I love you Casey."

She invited him to dinner. But I ruined it when I told her that he wasn't allowed to come.

She stayed on our deck with him while I cooked. But she informed me every few minutes of the new accomplishments Casey achieved.

"Casey just climbed!!"

"Casey just smiled at me!!"

"Casey is sooooo coooool!"

And then. . .

"The coolest thing just happened!! I pulled Casey apart, and both pieces started moving!! Now, I have two Casey's!!!"

Both Casey's died a mere 13 minutes of being introduced to Maddie. While their relationship was short, I'm sure he will always remember her in worm heaven.

As the strange little girl that put him there.

Blog Depression

Yesterday, I was asked a question that I wasn't prepared for. "Are you ever going to blog again?" It's been over a week since I last wrote on this blog.

The answer: Yes. Probably. I don't know.

I really don't know if I want to keep this blog.

It's not like I don't have plenty to write about. I could write about how I was laid off a couple of months ago, but no one has actually told me. I could write about how Justin has gotten a third job umpiring Little League games at night. Or how I've started working lunch shifts at the restaurant and the people are even crazier during the day.

But when I sit at the computer- nothing.

Nothing sounds right. Nothing looks right. Nothing.

I'm thinking I may have some type of blog depression.

And when I kick out of it. . . I'll be back. Comments or no comments.

The Game

Maddie's first softball game was on Saturday.




She showed no pre-game jitters.

And looked so tiny next to the other girls.

And even though she could barely see, she went 3 for 3. A way too big uniform can't stop my Pink Panther.

Even when her shorts fell to her knees when she was running from 1st to 2nd, she just kept going.

It's going to be an interesting season.

The Last Supper- 5 Year Old Style

Most of the time Maddie understands Bible stories as well as she does the concept of Cinderella. Basically, she hears the story and believes with all of her heart that it is true.

And I love that faith.

Last week, Maddie's school started telling the story of Easter, bit by bit.

"Guess what, Mommy."

"Ummm. . . you didn't have to go to the sad bear chair."

Insert sigh of disgust from her.

"No. I didn't. We learned a really cool Bible story."

"Really? That's great! Why don't you tell me about it."

"Well- I don't know if you will believe it."

"Of course I will believe it. If it came from the Bible it is true."

"Okay. . . In the last supper that Jesus had with his friends, they ate him."

"No, honey, that's not quite what happened."

"Uh-huh. It came from the Bible. It's true. They ate him and then drank his blood."

"Wow. I'll look it up in my Bible and try to explain it better, okay?"

So, I looked it up.

Matthew 26:26. . . "Take and eat; this is my body."
Matthew 26:27. . . Then he took the cup, gave thanks and offered it to them, saying, "Drink from it, all of you. 28 This is my blood of the covenant, . . .

Oy.

"See, Mom. I told you that they ate Jesus and drank his blood."

"I don't know how to explain this to you, but I promise you that they didn't eat Jesus."

She looked at me like I had no idea what I was talking about. And like I was going against everything we had taught her about the Bible and believing it.

I gave her a hug and promised to explain it when she is six.

Surely I can come up with something in a year, right?

Book Review and Giveaway

One of Maddie's very favorite things to do is swing. She took her first turn in the swing when she was about 6 months old.



And loved it.

Soon, the little daredevil was begging for more.

HIGHER! HIGHER!

My arms would be exhausted by the time we left the park.

Now that she is older, and has a swingset of her own, she has taught herself how to swing and to make herself go "higher, higher." Thank God.

A few days ago, I watched her swing. I wish I could have read her mind. She was enjoying every second of making herself go as high as she possibly could. And laughing like a lunatic the entire time.

This is one of the reasons I enjoyed Leslie Patricelli book "Higher! Higher!" so much. It is full of vivid pictures of the adventures a little girl encounters while swinging. Just how high can she go? Over a giraffe? Over a mountain? Into outer space?

I'm sure every child that loves to swing has gone there. The possibilities are endless.

One of her other books, "Baby Happy Baby Sad" was equally endearing. Maddie flipped through the pages, reading each scenario, then said with all seriousness-"Babies sure do go from happy to sad quickly, don't they?"

She has no idea. Or memory, for that matter.

This book is best for ages 1-3, and since Maddie is 5, it didn't hold her interest for long. But I know from experience that it would have been one of her favorites 3 years ago.

She told me that I could give away the baby book, but not the swing book. So. . .

If you want this book, leave me a comment. Like I said, it's best for ages 1-3 but would also make a cute baby gift. I'll have Maddie pick the winner. Good luck!

***Comments now closed***Sorry 'bout your luck***Except Megan***She won the book***

Lesson Learned

I have a confession to make.

I'm not always a very nice person. But I'm working on it.

My biggest downfall is making people laugh at the expense of others. It's mostly people that I know and love. They know that I do it for laughs and not out of meanness. I hope, anyway.

But, there are times that I say things about complete strangers that are mean and hurtful. I am fully aware that I shouldn't do it, but I can't seem to help myself. It is a toxic habit that I'm trying desperately to break.

Today, God taught me a lesson on remembering my manners.

A table was seated in my section. I walked up and as soon as I took a breath, I noticed it. They smelled really bad. I could go on and on about how bad they stunk, but like I said- I'm trying to be nicer.

I walked into the kitchen and told a co-worker about it.

"Nothing about them says 'clean' to me," was her response. We joked and laughed for a couple of minutes and then I took a deep, deep breath and walked back to them.

Chelsea, you don't know what their circumstances are.

You don't know them.

They didn't deserve that.

What is wrong with you. Mean, mean, mean.

They were the nicest couple I could have imagined. I felt terrible.

I was bringing their salads to them. My tray shifted and I dropped both salads, their bread, and their dressings all over the place. I felt terrible.

They were completely understanding and forgiving.

About 5 minutes later, I walked back to their table. She had a puzzled look on her face.

"Sweetheart. . . I don't know what this is. It feels like a seashell." She showed me what she had just pulled out of her mouth.

Oh. My. The woman was chewing on glass. Apparently, her replacement salad bowl had broken and no one noticed it.

Again- she was completely understanding and forgiving. And nice. She even apologised for finding the glass. I felt terrible.

Why was all of this happening to me? And to this poor woman?

And then it hit me. God knew exactly what I had said. And how I used this lady to make others laugh. It hurt. Probably not as much as it hurt her when she bit into the glass, but. . .

He was showing me that she was one of His children and she deserves as much love and respect as anyone else.

I am far from perfect. I'm sure I'll mess up. But I am going to try to be a nicer person.

In fact, I did very well today. She didn't leave me a much of a tip, even though most of her meal was comped.

And I didn't gripe.

I couldn't handle any more lessons today.

Health Kick

"Mommy, I ate something healthy today." Wow! It's about freakin' time.

"That's great! What did you have?" Please tell me something that I can make for all of us that doesn't include cheese and crackers.

"Cheese pizza." Ummmmm

"Well, honey, that's not really all that healthy." Captain Carlos agrees.

"Yes, it is." Seriously?

"Nope. Sorry. Try again."

"Mother, I'm not arguing with you about this." Okay, then.

It's official.

Cheese pizza is healthy. Eat up. Forget all the calories and fat grams. Forget what your doctor told you.

Maddie says that it's healthy and that's that.

Don't even try to argue.