Burnt Chicken and Stolen Batteries

I'm so glad that we serve a God who gives us the grace to laugh even when we walk through the valley of the shadow of death. These past two weeks of saying goodbye to my "Mama D" have come as a shock and yet have been filled with sweet moments we won't forget. Even now Tim and the rest of the family are in Oklahoma to bury his mom...

Meanwhile, I'm living in a comedy. Having 16-month-old "busy Danny" and 2-month-old Melody for these three days without Daddy's assistance gives me enough material to write the screenplay. Though yesterday I was in tears, today I'm laughing about the very things that made me cry. I guess a little perspective from Jesus can turn a storm into a waterpark.

It all started when we were out on errands. After stopping at the library, the bookstore, the church office, and Starbucks, I was tired of hauling out the double stroller and trying to get a squirming Danny buckled into the front seat. So I made the foolish decision to hold him with one arm and carry Melody in her carseat with my other arm as we walked into the store. While I was browsing for what I needed, I let Danny down to play with some beach balls he had spied. But before I knew it, he grabbed a couple of batteries off of the shelf and ran out of the store, heading straight for the parking lot! I left Melody on the floor and whatever else I was holding and tore after him just in time. I could feel the compassionate stares as we came back in and rescued Melody from the floor. Yep, that's me, the frantic mom who can't handle her children.

I was exhausted by the time we got home. So I put a screaming Danny down for a nap in his room and left a crying Melody in my room in the hopes that she would fall asleep. And I went and laid down on the couch with a pillow over my head so that I could get a quick nap. I think it was my one moment of peace and quiet all day.

Dinner was a fiasco as well. With two children crying for food simultaneously, I scrambled to get something cooking for Danny while I fed Melody. I emptied a box of macaroni into boiling water, but didn't let it cook long enough. Then I put a piece of chicken breast in the oven to bake, but completely forgot about it. The chicken was burnt to a crisp and had to be thrown away, and we ended up just having undercooked mac and cheese for dinner. I can't say that breakfast was any better this morning. I decided to make banana pancakes for Danny. I had already thrown most of the ingredients together when I discovered that we were out of eggs. So we made the best of it and swallowed the dense pancakes that stuck to the back of our throats. Oh well, as Tim's dad says, the life of a missionary is all about having a good sense of humor and a bad sense of smell. I'm glad that as I look back over the mishaps of the past day, I can share my funniest failures with you all, thankful that when I'm at my weakest point, God's power can shine through most.