Mother's Day

Talia started the day off with a hunger cry about 5:30 am. This was great since I was hoping to get her down for a pre church nap which meant breakfast and church dressing needed to happen early. I found 3 bowls sitting on the counter next to some cereal and listened to the sweet sound of a running dish washer. Fernando had already left for work about an hour earlier and so I guessed this was mother's day breakfast surprise that would still be safe to eat when I woke up. Really, the clean kitchen was really great.

The kids finally rolled out of bed just as I laid Talia down for operation pre-church nap. They smelled of chlorine and sun screen which brought back all the good memories of Sea World adventures the day before. Food, showers, and out the door looking appropriate all had to happen in less then 2 hours. Oh, I felt like I was at the top of my game. This is what motherhood is all about. I just needed one melt down, and something spilled on me, and some funny comments and I would feel at one with the Mother's Day aura.

We made it almost on time and sped only part of the way to church. Then non speeding parts happened to be the stop signs that I rolled through, but who's keeping track. Tiago munched half of Talia's snack on the way in, and Mia was complaining about having to share a water bottle with Tiago. All the while, I was shoving the lumpy diaper bag full of some essential distractions and urging a near run for the doors.

I luckily found some pieces of gum in the beyond disgusting diaper bag which worked for good bribes for sacrament reverence. I only had to leave about three times during the whole meeting which was pretty good. I also happened to be apart of the program since the Primary always sings on such events. I threw Talia to a sweet couple behind us and prayed that she wouldn't scream. Prayer heard and answered. Mia and Tiago wound their way up through the masses to find a squished spot on the stand.

Masses would accurately describe the scene. Mass chaos that is. Our ward has 120 active primary children to out rank our 105 active adults. And, even though there were mother's who were singing the "mother" part of Mother Tell Me a Story, there was no way to herd all those children discretely. I decided to play prelude until we were all ready. 10 rounds through the song, and a few false starts, we finally began. I am glad it was a short song and that the thought was what counted. Enough said.

The rest of the meeting was a blur, but no craziness occurred. Mia escorted Tiago to class and he actually stayed. Well, he was on the same row. . .just 10 feet away. Talia, who usually screams through church because of want of naps, was relatively quiet and would even spend some of the time locked in her car seat. At the end of church, we headed home feeling slightly super for the feat we just accomplished.

Then we all took a Mother's Day nap! Who cares what else happened, that was great. So, here is to a day that made me feel like I could do anything and still survive with a smile and some good stories. Fernando felt awful that his work prevented him from serving me, but I got a fantastic massage to make up for that (not that he needed to, but I didn't complain.)