Full service gas station, redefined

I vaguely remember going to the gas station with my father when I was a child and an attendant would fill the tank, wash our windshield and check under the hood.  By the time I started to drive, self service was the 'new' thing.  Now, you don't necessarily even have to interact with anyone when filling your gas tank.  Yesterday, I happened to go inside a gas station, and later realized that I'd left my cell phone there.  When I returned to pick it up today, it had not only been set aside for me, but the attendant saw that the battery was low and charged it.  My father would be happy to know that some level of full service does still exist at the gas stations that he once frequented 40 years ago, it's just redefined.

12 words of Christmas

We are in the throes of planning for Christmas.  What relatives will visit when, how much we can afford to spend, what picture will we put on the card, will the tree fall down again today?  I was fortunate enough to take a moment, amidst the chaos of planning, to watch a video yesterday called  “The Twelve Words of Christmas” by Louie Giglio.  It was truly inspirational, and grounding.  Inspired by the video, I sat with my husband and kids at dinner and shared the Cliff Notes. One of the things that stood out to me was a reference to Mary possibly praying that her child's birth not occur on that particular night in the stable. She was away from her home, about to sleep in a barn after a long day riding on a donkey, understandably exhausted.  A prayer like that would not have been surprising, but yet the answer she got was quite different.  Thinking that my kids may be able to relate to the pray for one thing, and receive something else message, I attempted to create a moment with them while re-telling the story.  I engaged the kids with questions, like were Mary and Joseph at their house when Jesus was born? "No," they quickly answered, "they were in a stable because there was no room at the inn," .  Then I asked "What do you think Mary may have prayed for that night? Do you think that she may have asked God 'please let me get home, so my child doesn't have to be born in a stable'" Without hesitation, my 10 year old said, "No, I think she was praying 'please let it be a girl, please, let it be a GIRL.'
For all those devoted families, that read scripture or follow a set ritual during the advent season, I commend you.  My attempt at doing that resulted in uncontrollable laughter around the table, although I have to believe that still counts as spreading Christmas Joy.

High efficiency vehicle parking

We drive a 10 year old mini-van, one that my kids friends have a hard time opening the doors, since they are manual, not automatic.  We're not interested in replacing it, much to the disappointment of the kids, since we don't have the money for a new car right now.  Recently, my 8 year old noticed the painted spots in a parking lot, reserved for high efficiency cars.  She asked what that meant.  I explained that that car manufacturers can use new technology to make their cars use gas more efficiently.  If people purchase those types of cars, they can park in these reserved spots.  My 10 year old asked if our car was fuel efficient, I replied no, that technology wasn't around 10 years ago.  The 8 year old chimed in, saying 'well, we may not be using fuel efficiently, but we're certainly using money efficiently.'   I love her wit and wisdom.

8 year olds campaigning

My daughter shared with me the classmates who'd received her vote in the student council election.  Her first vote went to her best friend.... of course, her second went to the classmate who, in her speech, vowed to encourage "all girls to flush when they use the bathroom."  If only politics were so simple for adults.  The boy sitting next to my daughter voted for the same gal twice, because she'd vowed to get chicken wings on the cafeteria menu, a very important issue to him, apparently.

The Talk

As a parent, I've learned that most important conversations are impromptu.  One day you hear a friend with older daughters say, well we had 'the talk' today, and you think, I won't have that talk for years.  Then, your 6 year old has a teacher that is expecting, which leads to the question "where do babies come from?"  My two daughters teamed up on me too.  I started with the talk about love, marriage, baby, etc.  They wanted more of the physical details.  I elaborated, with what I thought they could understand, they pressed for more details, I responded "you really want to know?"  I offered a little more.  Their eyes got wider with each new morsel of knowledge.  At the end of the conversation, the younger one responded, "oh, I thought the woman just ate something and it grew in her tummy."  The older daughter said 'So a woman's body changes when she gets pregnant, what happens to the man's body?"I replied that nothing physically changes for men, she said in turn "well, thats not fair!"

Sitting on the bench

My 10 year old recently joined a club soccer team.  She's good, but the other players are better. She spends most of her time on the bench at games.  Sometimes she cares, sometimes she doesn't, she loves soccer, so for the most part she's happy to be on the team. I've noticed that I'm more bothered by her being on the bench, then my husband is, and possibly more then my child is. I don't want to be 'that' parent who complains... and I am trying to treat this experience as a life lesson for her.  I patiently explain the important role she plays on the team, that her time will come, make the most of your time on the bench, etc, etc.  In doing so, I also find myself at a place in my life where I too am sitting on the bench.   My team is other moms in the community.  I always wanted to be included in the group, and now am, I am blessed to be in a community of amazing women.  I've realized that I sometimes feel that I'm watching them play, while sitting on the bench.  They are playing the game of leading a philanthropy effort, hosting the discussion group at church, earning an income, leading the volunteer effort at school or training for a marathon, and I'm sitting on the bench. I play part of the game, volunteering here and there, looking for a part-time job, I'm certain the team would say that I am 'doing great', but mostly I feel like I sit on the bench.  I guess I need to take to heart the advice I gave my daughter 'you are important to the team, you will get your time and in the meanwhile, watch, learn and have fun. Make the most of your time on the bench, its going to make you a better player in the long term.'