Vacation Day aka Really Long Post

What a day! As you read this, you'll probably think that I am either: A.) insane B.) brave or
C.) amazing. I'll just clear that debate up for you..... I am all of the above.

My friend Bekah's daughter had a birthday party today at Chuck E. Cheese's. We went and had a blast. It's a fun, albeit nasty, place to go. Can you say antibacterial wipes?

Afterwards, we had an hour or so to kill before we were to meet Kim and the boys at the McWane Center. So I gave the kids the option of the enormous, cool-looking downtown library or the B'ham Museum of Art. Overwhelming response for the art museum. My kids love it there. No joke. So off we went. We headed straight for the Art of Japan and China section. Very, very cool little miniature carvings. Plus, samari stuff. While there, we met Brenda. Brenda was our designated security stalker. But she was a lovely, fun, energetic tour guide. Maggie and Grace fell in love. Maggie quoted poetry. Grace told family secrets. Ms. Brenda told us about several exhibits we should go see. We did and were better for it.

The Creek Town Exhibit was awesome! Everything was hands-on and interactive. They played dress-up, sat in a canoe, made clay pottery, ground corn into meal, made music with turtle shell rattles tied to their bodies and played a native game involving sticks. (Can't go wrong with Ty and sticks. Well, most of the time... root canals excluded.)

After that exhibit, we strolled down to the Monet and Pissaro paintings. Then on to the American art. They love the horse and Indian sculptures. Right outside this exhibit, there was a little living room set up. TV playing a documentary, sofa, end tables, coffee table and a 3 person writing table, complete with paper, colored pencils, erasers, pencil sharpener and items to sketch. Kim and I sat on the couch and talked while the kids drew for almost 45 minutes. Our husbands would have been apoplectic by then.

We left the museum and headed for McWane Center. We saw the World of Water, an exhibit showcasing Alabama water eco-systems. Brody and Ty saw two turtles stacked on top of each other. Maggie and I saw two turtle engaged in inappropriate behavior. Same two turtles.

We went to the Money Town Exhibit. There was a plexiglass cube filled with strapped one dollar bills. Bren and I tried to estimate how much money was in there. We guessed over $250,000. Bren asked why they didn't use that money for improvements. I said that I thought it was to try to get people to do math, which it did. Sneaky people! Then we moved on to the Newsroom Exhibit. Ty enjoyed videoing himself performing on his air guitar, while Maggie gave a heart wrenching report on pediatric cancer. We stayed until they closed at 6pm.

We went to IHOP for supper. There we met, Nieshia. Super sweet, super great server. The kids colored pictures for her to take home. She brought them free ice cream. She has friends for life in my children now.

Maggie noticed that we made several new friends today and they were all "black". And she thought that was so cool. There aren't that many people of color in my kids lives. I regret that. But days like today are a start.

Days like today are priceless. I didn't spend any money. The Museum is free. We get into McWane free with our Space Center membership. Chuck E. Cheese was a birthday party. And of all their activities, the Museum was their favorite. They want to go back next week because there was so much we didn't get to see.

I absolutely love my life. I know it's hard, blah blah blah. But I love it. I love it. I think I dwell too much on the hardness of it. The laundry. The dishes. The budget. Yadda yadda yadda. But it's a lovely life. I have the priviledge of sitting and watching my kids play. Of smelling the pretty weeds they pick for me. Hearing them laugh at fart jokes. Answer their questions. Be their jungle gym. Hug them. Teach them.

All these things make me pine for heaven. Beauty here points me to a more profound beauty. Pain points me to a pain-free paradise. Laughter points me to the author of laughter. Sadness points me to the one who will forever wipe away my tears. Come, Lord Jesus. Come quickly.