Be Still and Know...Then and Now

Some days my brain and thought process works just fine, like today. I was able to follow through with several projects and actually get them completed.  Other days, if feels like my brain is stuffed with an enormous wad of hormonally soaked cotton. I teeter on bursting into tears over not being able to remember to remove the dryer lint from the lint trap or resisting the urge to break all my dinner plates by smashing them against the kitchen floor.  Toss into the mix a mouthy teenage daughter and by the end of the day the administration of a medicinal cocktail is a requirement not a luxury! The other side effect of all of this is that my tolerance for complications is almost non existent. Case in point, now that the girlchild had gradated high school the next logical step is collage. However, almost everything about the process of getting her enrolled into college has been an exercise complications, errors and a big fat waste of time and energy. None of wh...

How to begin… As a Christian, as a mom there are times when I feel overwhelmed. Case in point, last night on the way to church the girlchild was behind the wheel. The customary mode of operation is that as soon as her butt hits the seat there is an automatic change in the radio station. The concept of driving without music is just not an option. So there I sit in the passenger seat and it begins to wash over me. I am listening to the words that are pouring forth  from the radio and I am in shock. I continue to listen, wondering when the pod person is going to bust forth from my child's chest, because surely my sweet precious child would never listen to such as this. I cast a glance over to the drives side and watch as we travel along. Song number two comes on and again I am listing to the lyrics and becoming more and more alarmed. When my brain and my heart could take no more, fortunately we had come to a stop sigh. I had a moment to ask without distracting her, I asked “Do you...

6:15 am…sleeping like a stone warm and snug in my bed. There is a small tap on my shoulder… “Mom I need you to sign something.” and then she turns and walks back out into the livingroom. I get out of bed and she is sitting at the computer looking at homecomming dresses on the internet. She hands me the slip of paper and I ask, “What am I signing?” “It’s my Language Arts grade.” I forgot to put on my glasses so I can’t see the grade… “What is it?” “A 91” I sign the paper and then head back to bed and she then asks me, “Mom if I can find a really inexpensive dress online can we get it?” It is now 6:17 am and I am standing there looking at her wondering why she did not just bring the slip of paper into me in my room, then I wonder why I did not have the presence of mind to tell her to bring the slip of paper into me in my room so I did not have to get out of bed and NOW at 6:17 am she is asking me about homecoming dresses…..which I all ready told her I was not buying her anothe...

  She bursts through the door after school breathless with excitement! Girlchild said: “Mom! It’s Ok if I go to the game tonight right?” She proceeds to explain to me the so and so is on her way over to pick her up for the game because and I quote “She is already in the neighborhood picking somebody else up!” Mom said: “Who is this person and how old is she?” Girlchild said: “She is a friend from Orchestra, she is sixteen and she has been driving for a LONG time.” I feel so much better….NOT Mom said: “I'm not comfortable with you getting in the car with a person who I have never met, not to mention you springing this on me at the last minute!” Girlchild said: “Mom! (eye rolling for emphasis!) you’re always uncomfortable about stuff like this!”   more talking, more whining, more parental admonitions all the while she is hastily getting ready to go… Girlchild said: “Mom will you at least talk to so and so…..”   more talking, more questions…..   Mom said:...

Someone stepped on the Girlchild’s violin at school yesterday, and yes we had a lengthy conversation as to why the violin was on the floor. I told her to look up the telephone number to the music store and then call them to see about getting it repaired. She goes online and looks up the telephone number. She dials the number on her cell phone and then stands there looking at me with this odd confused look on her face. She hands me the phone and tells me there is this weird beeping noise. I take the phone and put it to my ear and give a listen. I then take a deep breath and explain to her that it’s called a busy signal….   Really? blessing and deep breathing R

I explained to my husband yesterday when he came home from work that unbeknownst to him we had officially transitioned into a completely different phase of our parental experience. It was that thing that all parents know will happen eventually but try to avoid thinking about. I stood in the driveway and watched my child hop in the car and head off to the movies with her bestie behind the wheel of the car. "Bring seventeen . . . the  Inevitable Frontier. These are the teenage experiences of the parental mother-ship Be Still and Know . Her mission : to remain calm as her daughter pulls out of the driveway for the first time with another teenage driver heading off to the movies, explore strange new feelings of panic ; to seek out comfort and advice for those that have traveled this road before her; to boldly state “Be sure to text me when you get there!” – Robin, Be Still and Know Of course you must hum the theme for Star Trek to get the full impact of this profound statement...

I walked into the DD room, she is sitting on the bed listening to her/my IPod, but that is a whole other story that I will delve into at a later date! “I am heading out are you coming or staying?” The kids have a day off from school today due to a teacher furlough day. “I’ll stay here.” the DD says. “Are you sure, you could be my chauffer. You need the driving time. Plus I thought you wanted to get an application at the new pizza place?” “Can’t you just pick one up for me?” “It would be better if you did it in person!” “Where are you going? I don't want to be gone all day!!!” “Well I need to go to Wal-Mart, stop by Home Depot, maybe go to the ATT store and look at new phones, get the emissions done on the car and a few other things…” She hops off the bed, “OK I”ll go, it will take me a few minutes to get ready though!” The deciding factor….she really wants a new phone! I may just leave that one off till the very last just for fun y’all! My bad!   Blessings R

We were driving home last night from church. We had a wonderful supper. I got to see my son and his family. Anytime I get to spend some time around the table with Muffinhead and crew is wonderful. The conversation after dinner was equally pleasant. It was a good night! On the way home I had a moment of clarity. It was like the heavens parted and God filled up the car and said “Robin, Honey…you just need to let this one go! No matter what you say it is going to be WRONG and it is going in one 16 year old ear and right out the other!” My experience with my son at 16 was very different. His interests leaned towards electric guitars, rock and roll, mayhem and basically doing the exact opposite of whatever we told him to do. He was a whirling dervish of rebellion and chaos all rolled into a handsome blonde curly head with devastating blue eyes. Teenage girls are a different animal. Our conversation on the way home went something like this. The names have been changed to protect the priv...

If you read my previous post then you will understand why today I am thankful for the peace and quiet in my house. The hubs is out of town on business and yesterday I drove the DD out to her Aunt’s house to spend a few day with her cousins and her grandmother. I am breathing in the solitude, making pepper jelly and catching up on the movies on the DVR that no one want to watch but me. My fan is directed right at me so I’m not hot, at least not right now anyway. Since the hubs and DD are both out of the house don’t have to cook anything, clean anything or wash anything beyond my own hands. I am thankful for my new favorite vegetable juice, it’s super yummy! If you have not tried the new Motts vegetable juice I highly recommend it! I am thankful for the small things like yarn and a crochet hook that give me the ability to occupy my thought on to productive things rather than dwell on those thing I can do nothing about! I am thankful that later tonight I get to meet with the most wo...

So I get up this morning and have my coffee. Now the coffee was good which was odd seeing as just about everything else that happen today was CRAP! I had a conversation with skoots1mom yesterday about the tedious accounting tasks that needed to be finished. I had multiple bills that we on deck to be paid, a paycheck to be entered into quicken and the monthly bank statement needed reconciling. If I managed to get it all done then I would be at prayer shawl in the morning. Well I managed to get most of it done the night before but my energy level as well as my mental capacity for logical thought left me by about 8:30 so I opted to forgo any further tasks that required columns of numbers and the ability to think clearly until morning. With a cup of coffee under my belt I began to check off the bank statement tick mark by tick mark. The numbers however were not in a good place. Twice I went over the statement and twice there was a massive error to the tune of several thousands of dollar...

We are getting ready for church and I step into the DD bathroom to use her flat iron, hers is of course better than mine. She is helping me with the last few strands in the back to make sure I will not embarrass her to terribly with unfinished hair when her phone vibrates. It’s 7:30 AM, I’m thinking exactly who is she texting with at this hour and on a Sunday morning no doubt. Me being the mom and all I ask “Who was that?” “Oh that was so and so, I asked her if I could borrow a pair of her footie socks, I’m wearing my flats to church.” With a tile of my head I respond “I just bought you a brand new pack of trouser socks!” “Mom! You can’t wear THOSE kind of sock with flats!” I stand corrected, while I am wearing my black trouser socks whilst wearing my flats I might add apparently the whole concept behind wearing skinny straight leg jeans and flats is so that the top of your foot shows…who knew apparently not me. It boggles the mind…..   R