Monday March Madness

Today is the first day of Spring.
We woke to sleet and snow.
Sort of anti-climactic...very cold, dreary. Very WINTER.

We were at The Easter Worship Celebration Event Band Practice until 9:00 last night. Things went better the second time with us all playing with the demo CD. Crammed some peanut butter crackers and water down during practice for supper. Nothing like PB and cracker in a pinch. Keep it in the music bag AT ALL TIMES, I do.

We HAVE to time it as the choral production is written pretty closely for the choir to follow. We are SO unused to playing that tight, or even with written music as much these days, so challenging. Brushing up where I haven't in a while. Fun, but grueling at times.

Like this morning. Out at 7:30 AM, still tired from so realizing how much I have to learn still from least night, in the sleet, kids "Monday-ish", cramming a poptart down my throat as I looked to make sure I had an umbrella, not able to find Red's shoes, trying to get childcare on the fly, needing gas in the van. Ugh. Gas station was already CLOSED after practice last night? On a Sunday... I'm glad to see it...but now getting gas in the sleet. Oh well. For a good cause.

I tried to schedule a "sectional" for "strings" this morning before my week got too full...(uh, strings, meaning: me, myself, and I. Might I also add, a cold large auditorium where the heat was not working? At the sound of sleet on the windows and oh, how dreary!)

While I had the childcare, got all my errands done I could think of to do. Got the grocery shopping done, and the first week Upward Flyers printed, and made a noon prayer group. Wow. Full morning. But, a lot done. Trying to get out of town this weekend, with peace that important stuff is done. Trying to learn to stay more ahead.

Why no words from the on scores? For Pete's sake? Hand transcribed what's going on from the choir's book so that in the semi-darkness on the fly, I can have a hope of figuring out where I am if I get behind. (Our "conductor" personality is also doubling on trumpet, and it moves so fast, I don't have much time to look at or depend on him anyway.) Has taken me several hours to just figure out the score enough to know where it all lays. Like trying to figure out what a house looks like by dimensions only or something. I can't visualize it until it's 3-D.

The trusty Roland. I love that keyboard...a great sound. But, no bagpipes to be found.

So...there's my exciting 8AM to 10:30AM.

When the commitment to creativity hits the road for sure.


I literally had chills in the noon prayer time, first one this week. The Spirit of God was just so present, the women so hungry to see it covered in the prayer it deserves. Five months in advance. May God ignite and unite the women of this area, break strongholds, help us know how to pull it all together and honor Him. Our first big women's conference. We have some mighty women stepping out in faith! So exciting (watching them almost as exciting to me as anything I can imagine God doing in the conference itself!)

Then...HOME! Finally cleaned up breakfast, got Red to snuggle with me for an afternoon nap, picked up the other two from school. Now, working on a gift for my nephew I'm flying to see this weekend for his first birthday. A scrapbook, of course, if I can pull it together.

Then, supper, and the first of three evening soccer practices. Yes: three kids, on three different teams this year. And, a PTO meeting, which I think I must miss. I have a husband to rev up to handle a fundraiser for the school without me this weekend. That is a job enough.

I guess this entry should have gone into "the daily", random rambling. But, you know. I realized I've not posted a long and bored daily blog here for a while, and I miss it. You know why? Because I never want to lose site of "the daily"...the main thing... in mt attempt at things looking "more ordered". This is "my stuff"...THE stuff that makes it all connect and matter for me.
So, it makes the "blog front page" today! Go, life! Sorry for the length, but I think I needed it today.

You know, my prayer throughout this whole day has been for or God to just stir things/me up afresh. Not necessarily to change anything in particular, no, not the whack me on the head kind of stirring. But just for Him to breath that sense of eager expectancy, relevance, vibrancy, and joy only He can infuse back into our "stuff", no matter how good or "fun" or meaningful it all really is! No matter how blessed we are. Nothing means anything outside of Him. Not really. It loses it's kick. It's joy. It's focus. It just all becomes more to do and tires us. And He's been doing that for me today. Somehow. Giving me more patience. His patience. The same patience he has for me.

Wow! In the middle of that written prayer, a phone call...soccer cancelled due to weather.

He knows exactly what I need.

Wow! You mean I get to sit down to eat, with my family! No more cramming food?

See there...the mundane just became meaningful again! Thanks. A weekend of food on the fly and I'm needing to "root down" again. Make kids eat their corn...

PTO or not to PTO? No. Not today. Know when to stop.

So, on to "Sloppy Joes" with melted cheese, dill pickes, and hopefully some tater tots... at a table... with my crew. I'm wild, I'm different -- I'm sitting down for a meal, EATING TOGETHER, at a table, with my family!

What a REBEL!

I might just win March Madness after all (heaven's knows the Cats won't be there.)

Me!