I owe last night all to my(older) brother. He was supposed to breeze into town after being close by on business but...didn't. Couldn't. Wouldn't. Whatever. Okay, okay - I'm being a baby.
Anyway, since the sitter was already booked and although the thought of curling up with a stack of books at Barnes and Noble all by my lonesome for 3 hours on a Saturday night was terribly tempting (sad but true), I opted for plan B: Girls' Night Out. The "girls" being my 13 year old daughter and me. And wow, what a treat.
Although, I wasn't so confident of that as we were planning the night...
"Mom, can I call Brooke (not her real name) and ask her to come with us?" (her)
"Well, no, I thought this time it would be just the two of us." (me)
"Mommmm...WHY?" (her)
"Just because." (me)
Doesn't sound too promising, does it?
But what a GREAT time we had! And you know what? She sucked it up and enjoyed herself. She had a monumental stack of gift cards and a wad of babysitting cash ready to spend, but she followed me to my stores (at first) and did her best to dress me a little more stylish than usual. Which actually isn't too hard since anything more than flip flops and jeans is a fashion improvement.
Then, when I was finished and I couldn't carry another bag, I followed her around and watched in amazement at the little shopper she had become. Only two (maybe three) years ago we spent HOURS in Limited Too while she stared at racks and racks of clothes having no idea what she liked or what she wanted to try on. Painful.
But no longer. She whizzed through shops and honed in on exactly what she liked. She looked at tags, compared prices and added an accessory here and there. She knows what she likes. Time being key at 8:30 on a Saturday night (especially with three more stores to go before the mall closes), she skipped the dressing rooms and held up shirts and shorts to herself before taking a chance on whether something would fit. And just where did she learn that?
I was truly amazed. And also thankful to have somehow, some way, produced a fashion guru (okay...she's just a typical teenager) from whom I can borrow cute shirts and fun jewelry. Because, I'm thinking after last night, there is no way I should be dressing myself anymore without seeking her advice first.
As the mall closed and we HAD to leave, we spent another hour or so bonding at Olive Garden. It had been far too long since I spent the night out with my oldest daughter. Far far too long. She has changed so much since shopping at Limited Too. She has changed so much just in the last six months. And in just four more months...she will be out of middle school. Finished. The awkward years over. Just in time for High School.
Suddenly I'm at a loss for words. My fingers just sat still over the keyboard not knowing what else to say. And they are doing it again right now.
All I know is that, out of all of the Girls' Night Outs that I've had, last night was absolutely the best ever. And that's saying a lot. It was some good stuff.
:-)
Sunday, January 28, 2007
Sunday, January 21, 2007
Tea Time
Since I'm officially on my way out of the dumps (for now) thought it was high time to add to my list of Sweeter Sites. Typed the previous post while indulging in my new nightly ritual of drinking a mega-mug of hot tea. But not just any tea - Tazo Tea (Calm is my personal favorite.)
So I thought I'd check out their site. Definitely sweet...can't wait to go back and play around with it more when I'm not quite so sleepy. Try out a cup of virtual tea for yourself.
:-)
So I thought I'd check out their site. Definitely sweet...can't wait to go back and play around with it more when I'm not quite so sleepy. Try out a cup of virtual tea for yourself.
:-)
A Good Tired
Lately, I've been totally exhausted by the end of the day. Actually, I've become totally exhausted by the time I make it to work. Some days I'm even exhausted as soon as I wake up.
I have wondered if maybe I'm getting sick. Or if I've developed an awful disease. But then I realized that all my joy and typical silliness were no longer around, and I had to accept that (oh no, not again) I'm a little down. Truly blue. I HATE that. Really, I do.
I mean it's not like I don't have so so much to be thankful for. My car works, I don't cut my own grass and my kids are healthy and fairly happy. So not feeling very thankful for those and scads of other things that are perfectly peachy, I became, ummm, unsettled. I think that's because I've been less than thankful before and I know the blues follow close behind. In a way it's kind of nice to see them coming at you. Gives me time to give a few people a heads up. Gives them time to hide or at least to fill their calendars with other people, places and parties while I sit at home and wallow in my selfish sadness. Kidding.
Anyway, before you start thinking that I'm just one big whiner, let me say that (for me) feeling extra sad has not always been a bad thing. Years of living through the coming and the going of my blues has taught me that...well, they come and then (thank you, God) they go. And some of the most amazing things can happen in the middle of being down in the dumps.
The blues make me very humble. Which is surprising since I'm not exactly arrogant when I'm not being sad. But once I'm down and I know I'm going to be there for a bit, I settle in and start to relax. Because there is absolutely no point in fighting it. And then, and then, I start to take a look to see what really is going on in my house, in my family and in my life. "Whoa," I say to my solemn self, "No wonder you are so depressed."
Because usually it's only when I'm totally at a loss for how to keep on going - when I'm thinking that there is no possible way that I can manage all of this - that I remember that I'm not supposed to be trying to do it all on my own. And in my mind I start to see a feature film length slideshow of all the times and all the ways I have completely taken over MY life. Oops. Again.
So I humbly go to the door and knock. And, of course, He answers. He's been waiting on me to fall on my face (just because it was bound to happen again) and to remember what I was forgetting. Him. Thank goodness He's always so happy I'm back. Thank goodness God is so smart, too. He doesn't just pick me up, brush me off, give me a hug and send me back to blissful days right away.
He sits right down beside me...right down in the dumps and waits. Waits for me to watch that slideshow over and over again. He lets me be sad. And it's okay because I remember He is with me now. He knows me. He knows I need to think about (and probably cry over) every single slide. He's so patient.
But that is the exhausting part of being blue. For me. Sitting there with God and going over all the ways I've taken over for Him. Talking to Him about how I decided to take over His job and how stupid that is...especially since it's happened before. Oh, is he ever patient. I just love that.
And I love Him. And that is why it's a Good Tired. Because once I'm talking to God (again) about letting Him take it all back for me - once I give it all up and ask for His will to be done and not mine - then I know I'm on my way out of the dumps. I can feel the blues begin to fade.
And I'm very thankful.
:-)
I have wondered if maybe I'm getting sick. Or if I've developed an awful disease. But then I realized that all my joy and typical silliness were no longer around, and I had to accept that (oh no, not again) I'm a little down. Truly blue. I HATE that. Really, I do.
I mean it's not like I don't have so so much to be thankful for. My car works, I don't cut my own grass and my kids are healthy and fairly happy. So not feeling very thankful for those and scads of other things that are perfectly peachy, I became, ummm, unsettled. I think that's because I've been less than thankful before and I know the blues follow close behind. In a way it's kind of nice to see them coming at you. Gives me time to give a few people a heads up. Gives them time to hide or at least to fill their calendars with other people, places and parties while I sit at home and wallow in my selfish sadness. Kidding.
Anyway, before you start thinking that I'm just one big whiner, let me say that (for me) feeling extra sad has not always been a bad thing. Years of living through the coming and the going of my blues has taught me that...well, they come and then (thank you, God) they go. And some of the most amazing things can happen in the middle of being down in the dumps.
The blues make me very humble. Which is surprising since I'm not exactly arrogant when I'm not being sad. But once I'm down and I know I'm going to be there for a bit, I settle in and start to relax. Because there is absolutely no point in fighting it. And then, and then, I start to take a look to see what really is going on in my house, in my family and in my life. "Whoa," I say to my solemn self, "No wonder you are so depressed."
Because usually it's only when I'm totally at a loss for how to keep on going - when I'm thinking that there is no possible way that I can manage all of this - that I remember that I'm not supposed to be trying to do it all on my own. And in my mind I start to see a feature film length slideshow of all the times and all the ways I have completely taken over MY life. Oops. Again.
So I humbly go to the door and knock. And, of course, He answers. He's been waiting on me to fall on my face (just because it was bound to happen again) and to remember what I was forgetting. Him. Thank goodness He's always so happy I'm back. Thank goodness God is so smart, too. He doesn't just pick me up, brush me off, give me a hug and send me back to blissful days right away.
He sits right down beside me...right down in the dumps and waits. Waits for me to watch that slideshow over and over again. He lets me be sad. And it's okay because I remember He is with me now. He knows me. He knows I need to think about (and probably cry over) every single slide. He's so patient.
But that is the exhausting part of being blue. For me. Sitting there with God and going over all the ways I've taken over for Him. Talking to Him about how I decided to take over His job and how stupid that is...especially since it's happened before. Oh, is he ever patient. I just love that.
And I love Him. And that is why it's a Good Tired. Because once I'm talking to God (again) about letting Him take it all back for me - once I give it all up and ask for His will to be done and not mine - then I know I'm on my way out of the dumps. I can feel the blues begin to fade.
And I'm very thankful.
:-)
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