Fun, Frustration & Perspective

Friday was a great day. We took the kids to a big parade in Grandville. We managed to find a decent spot (all curbside is taken way earlier than I'd like to be there). The people in front of us were kind enough to sit on the ground instead of their chairs so our kids could see. Unfortunately a very round and talkative man stood next to us. He kept moving closer and closer. He eventually was holding on to the handle of our stroller and his belly was hovering over my head. My hubby had abandoned me for some shade and it took a bit for him to come save me. I was about one more story away from telling him to let us enjoy the parade. We made it about 2/3 the way through before Ryan said all the loud noises were hurting his feelings (maybe his ears too). All the semis, firetrucks, emergency vehicles were blasting their sirens which most everyone loved, except my boy with sensitive ears.

We headed for the cottage. Andy's aunt from IN was coming up with a grandson for Ryan to play with. It was all older family, but it was a good time. The boys got along great. We stayed late for fireworks on the lake. We had Ryan wear earphones for the noise because he was scared. That seemed to help. Neither boy was that interested. It was late and they just wanted to play. They did remarkably well for getting home after midnight.

Saturday was another story. We made it about 3 miles away from the cottage for a family reunion when we discovered that the scabbies were back. Ryan was crushed to miss out on all the fun. So we dropped off our food and headed out. The in-laws gave the boys some money to stop and get a special toy on the way home. We are now the proud owner of light-sabers. I cried a good part of the day along with doing laundry and taking a nap. Just completely felt overwhelmed and disappointed. I'm sick of it all.

We had to cancel plans to get together with friends from out of town that we hadn't seen in forever for Sunday. We were disinfected, but the house wasn't fully. That actually turned out well because our friends (and pastor) ended up with their house flooding while they were on vacation for a few days. They came back to a huge mess of water and serious damage. About a dozen of us went over to help clean up and suck as much water out of the carpet as I could. This gave me better perspective that things could always be worse.

Their house was only a few miles from the cottage so we went over there to let the kids swim and see the grandparents. The day actually ended fairly well.

Today is D-Day. No storming the beaches at Normandy, but another letter day. In true family fashion, we celebrated by going to the Doctor and finding out I have a urinary track infection followed by another lab visit for a blood Draw. My numbers are a bit out of wack and trying to keep my blood levels safe.

So there's a fun, frustrating, and perspective filled holiday weekend. I need to get back to laundry now because there is TONS to do thanks to the scabbies and we are leaving this week to take our junior high kids on a missions trip. We're helping at a kids camp in the kitchen, grounds work, and setting up games. Should be an interesting, and hopefully good trip. We try to emphasize service to the kids and helping others. It's a great way to get them to start giving of themselves as well as growing spiritually. Your prayers for safety, unity, attitudes, and effectiveness are appreciated.