Thursday, October 9, 2014

My Crummy, Mundane, Amazing Day

Today started a little crazy.

Have you ever had a day like that? Where all you could think right from the start was, "Oh my gosh...this day is not starting out well and it's just going to get worse." And then it usually does.

Well, that is how my day started. After a very late night (like most of my nights these days-thank you, baby Gretchen) I had to start early. My 5 year old daughter had a doctors appointment that had all 5 of us girls leaving for the day earlier than normal. After some planning, I decided that an hour and a half should do the trick of getting everyone ready and out the door (this didn't include time for breakfast). So, I set my alarms accordingly...and yes, I said alarmS...as in the plural. I really didn't want to start my morning off badly.

So, this morning comes around and my oldest ends up with my phone (which is where my alarms are set) while I'm still in bed with the baby feeding her. I tell my oldest that she can use my phone quickly but needs to bring it back because I have my alarm set (I usually don't need an alarm thanks to my children). At this point, I'd had a nice long interrupted 3 hours of sleep, give or take. I was feeling wide awake. Hence the need for the alarms. I wanted to make sure I had back up in case I dozed off while feeding Gretchen. Which I did. I needed to have my phone to have my alarm to wake me up. Which I didn't...so I didn't...and I...didn't.Yep...when my brain fluttered back into full consciousness after being drowsy during the baby's feeding well, let's just say I knew something was wrong. I did not have an hour and a half to get everyone ready, I did not have an hour, I had about 35 minutes...

Oh sugar!! (That's my "bad" word-hey, I have kids people.)

That's where that phrase from earlier crept up on me. Crummy start to a crummy day. While getting ready I even inadvertently sprayed perfume in my eye...yeah. That felt great! It still does, in fact. I even got our dinner in the crock pot! In 45 minutes we made it to the van and onto the freeway. I made it to the doctor's office with about 1 minute to spare.

The rest of the day was running errands from one town to the next all seemingly just a touch behind schedule. Stress, frustration, stress. My 3 year old had many minor meltdowns due to a lack of nap, my 5 year old had some struggle with her sense of entitlement, my 7 year old was asking a billion questions that my brain and patience couldn't process not to mention her ability to pick on her sisters, and my one month old was sick of the carseat. All those things happened. All today. All with a very tired mamma.

But, I got to text and visit with a few friends that I haven't spent time with in a while. That was positive number one. And as I was driving home I realized many other positives. See, I have the privilege of being a mommy not once over but four times over. I get to see their beautiful faces every single day. I have the privilege of driving a mini van that I love (that my husband just did a bunch of work on and yeah, I know...I'm totally a mom). I have a wonderful husband. Period. And I have the grace of God who forgives my wrongs and guides me to do right, gently corrects me when I'm wrong, allows me to forgive and ask forgiveness, and literally fills my life with joy. 

My day started out crummy. It was full of the mundane. And it was absolutely amazing!

Pretty neat, huh?