Ashlin awoke before the rest of us this morning. She shared the secret of her consciousness by filling the house with the buttery aroma of cinnamon raisin toast.
Within an hour we were all fed, dressed and in the car.
We dropped Mari Alice and Luke off for the first round of haircuts.
To the church house to fill out various forms, to pick up a vbs shirt, and to officially reject the box of dust mite infested, scraggly haired, missing eyed puppets that were graciously offered to be used at caMP3 next month. Umm, no thank you, please.
Back to the salon to trade out a bobbed brunette and tidy blond, for two more overgrown Johnsons.
To the bank and library to deposit and withdraw respectively.
A quick swing by dance. Landen and Ash were still at the salon, Luke and Liz shared a mid-morning snack while I walked Mari in to her class. I got to visit with a dear friend from days gone by. Cheerful, cheek-aching, reminiscing and laughter.
Ok, one more slide by the salon to trade an Ardyn for an Ash. Ardyn's hair is the longest and thickest and her preferences are the most tedious, so we saved her for last. With yet another hour of Mari's dance camp left, we needed an adventure.
Almost immediately I thought of a cool place - in terms of both intrigue and climate. The local art museum. Tours are free and they have a large discovery center in the foyer. Score! Luke and Ash and Liz and I meandered through the beautifully painted scenes, the surprisingly odd pieces, and semi-frightening tribal mask collection.
We leisurely enjoyed the remainder of wait time in the discovery center. Luke found a kit to build an obstacle course for marbles. Elizabeth explored the reading tent and the little box of toy trains. Ashlin creatively spelled her name on the large carpeted wall with velcro-backed wooden shapes. I sat and visited with other moms.
Back to the car. The filthy, muddy car. Yesterday's errands included four trips down a road under construction and had left my car doused in a liquid coating of red clay.
Landen texted that his hair was done, but that Ardyn needed a few more minutes. Realizing we'd need to pick up Mari first, we headed back toward the studio. With ten minutes to spare, Luke and I gathered all our quarters and made good use of the car wash across from the studio.
As the clean car dripped dry, I ran inside to collect my darling dancer. With a root beer sucker in her cheek, and her hand in mine, we hurried back across the street to...
Get in the car.
Quick scoot by the salon to gather Ardyn and Landen, and then we were on our way home for a late lunch. A few zones, a tasty meal, and nap time for several.
I had time to toss some chicken in the crock pot before I had to leave again. Luke had an hour to jump start the mowing project before he would have to come in and monitor nap time. As soon as Luke was blown off and hydrated, I took Landen to his job at a nearby daycare, then headed back into town for one last hair appointment - my own.
(We are in a "nursing-back-to-decency" phase with my hair that requires slight, yet frequent trims. If you haven't heard the laughable long story, you can read HERE.)
I returned refreshed and reshaped...well, just my hair...I'm pretty much stuck with my overall shape for the time being;) Nap time was still in session for some. Since I was back in charge, Luke was free to return outside to mow the lawn for baseball practice.
I opened the mail, cleaned off the table, swapped out the laundry and painted my nails. Then I painted 40 tiny toenails. Ardyn wanted zebra. Ashlin asked for ladybugs. Mari Alice wanted watermelon, and Liz chose her signature "greeeeeeeen".
Philip came home during the mass pedicure, and went around our circle kissing foreheads before he changed into his baseball clothes. About the time our nails were dry, I remembered I needed to go get Landen from work.
By the time I returned, players and parents were arriving for practice. The girls ate supper while we visited with friends. They painted and squeezed in a few rounds of wii before we had to excuse ourselves in order to take Landen to his game.
We
loaded
the
car
again
and
headed
into
town.
Philip was working. Did I mention Philip got called out to work somewhere between the team arriving and the actual commencement of practice? Sorry.
The girls and I delivered Luke to his OTHER practice and were able to play at the playground with MORE friends until Landen's game started. His 8:00 game started late and ended in a tie after extra innings...a liitle after 11pm.
Seven very dusty, tired, barely-cranky people pulled in the driveway shortly after the very dusty, tired, hardly-ever-cranky dad had arrived home.
Baths, snacks, drinks, kisses, hugs, BEDS.
And a lone blog post from the one who seemed to catch her second wind somewhere in the eighth inning.
Thank You, God, for today. This life is rich and full. I know this level of activity is only for a season. Thank You for the peaceful easy days that You'll provide another time. Thank You for the energy and joy to see us through the busyness until then. Thank You for showing Your kindness and power in the details of this life...in the lives around me. We live for You alone. Loveya:)
