Church started at 6pm, and we were on our way. It was 5:40, and knowing it would be crowded, I had tried like heck to leave the house at 5:15. Did I mention it was the "Resurrection Sunday Eve" service? We weren't going to make it on Sunday to church, too much preparation for the company that was coming over for lunch, and we wanted to sleep in, so we opted for Saturday night. After all, it was the same special message, and we would be able to dress a little more casually. There is this unspoken pressure to dress elegantly and "Spring-like" on Easter Sunday, and we couldn't afford the time or money to shop for one-time wear this year. It isn't just the dresses for the girls either, it is the outfit, the shoes, the pantyhose, etc. And for the boys...well it means at least Khaki's and a nice polo shirt...and since my boys would rather eat broccoli and boogers than dress up, Saturday night service was the best option.
Where was I? Oh, yeah. We were late out the door because I had to do hair for 4 little girls and at least one boy, and make sure the infant wasn't wearing a winter sweatsuit. Now, I am not the great hairdini...so I simply put a sweet ponytail in the two younger girls hair, and a matching bow. A little gel and a comb...and the middle boy was good to go. The baby, well no hairdo necessary. We were off.
Did I mention that we were on a tight budget? No money for new dresses? Well, as God would have it, He provided some treasures from their closet as He sometimes does. My oldest found something suitable (Never wore it before, wasn't perfect...but okay), my second oldest daughter found a hand-me-down dress that suited her perfectly. It was casual enough to wear with flats and we happened to have some that were a perfect match. (She was lookin' good.) Then my third daughter scored a great find from the dress closet...a beautiful, pink and white polka dot chiffon summer dress, one that still had the tags on it from a shopping trip in 2006. We bought it at Nordstrom's in the San Francisco area when we were going to a wedding...it wasn't a perfect fit yet, so we bought it anyway and held onto it for later. Boy...was it cute...a 1950's style polka dot dress with a little flare to it and heck...it was the only thing in our house that had been purchased at Nordstrom's...so it had to be special, right? That leaves the baby girl, our sweet four year old who fit perfectly in a spring dress that had only been worn once before...and no one had ever seen it...so we were set! No money spent! Woohoo!
Now, I am not the kind of mom to perfectly primp each child before church. I might say "Umm, no...not that outfit" but other than that...they are free to dress themselves appropriately and do their own hair. I don't usually fuss over those details, mainly because I don't have the time or the energy between loads of laundry (finding clean underwear on a Sunday is usually mission enough), breastfeeding, and trying to remember to brush my teeth. (Tip...minty fresh gum in purse as backup!) I know that some moms would be appalled as they feel that how neatly dressed and groomed their kids are is a reflection of their parenting, and they must put on a good show. I say, WYSIWYG*. *What you see is what you get. We aren't perfect, we aren't always happy, we aren't always even presentable...but if we are together and we are at church, we are two steps ahead, right? I mean, how many times have you survived the argument on the way to church, stepped out of the car to realize you forgot your Bibles, barely got your makeup on during the car-ride, and had to resort to Sunglasses as a hair clip? As a comedian once put it, by the time we get to church (9 people) we don't need a sermon, we need a medal!
With that explanation, let me say that after finding my FREE Easter clothes for the girls, and the somewhat cute pony tails and everyone showered and teeth brushed...oh, and we ALL had our Bibles, I was feeling pretty good about myself. I was thinking, "Check me out. And I didn't spend a dime. You?" I was also thinking, I hope the grandparents are here to see how cute we are. (I even managed to wear a bright spring aqua blue shirt over my usual black spring wardrobe...see previous post...and matching blue shoes!) Again...I was puffing up. God, however, in His infinite wisdom in the book of Psalms says, "Don't brag on yourselves, let others do it for you." Hey...I was still safe, I never said a word to anyone. But that wasn't it. He knows the condition of our hearts. As a man (or woman) purposes in his(her) heart, so he(she) is. So I was. I was proud. It probably was written on my face. Is that so wrong? Probably not, but again...God knows how to deal with all of our issues, right? Don't answer that. Let me just illustrate it for you.
It was a great service. We enjoyed the fellowship of friends and before you knew it we were picking up the kids. Again, I beamed with pride as I picked up my girls. "Tell your teacher thank you and Happy Easter!" The girls: "Thank you." (Welling up with more pride, I couldn't help it. "Aren't they sweet?," I thought.) Awwww. We wrangled all seven kids back into the car and were on our way home. "That was all worth it," I thought. "All of the trouble of dressing them up AND doing their hair."
Lest you think I missed the lightening bolt of conviction, read on. We made a quick stop on the way home. My husband ran into the store as I waited with the kids in the car. I looked over at my third daughter (Nordstrom dress) tipped over and sleeping in the drivers seat, and there it was. Staring me right in the face like a V8 slap....just under the pink polka dot chiffon...laying neatly on the satin underneath...ta da!
Where was I? Oh, yeah. We were late out the door because I had to do hair for 4 little girls and at least one boy, and make sure the infant wasn't wearing a winter sweatsuit. Now, I am not the great hairdini...so I simply put a sweet ponytail in the two younger girls hair, and a matching bow. A little gel and a comb...and the middle boy was good to go. The baby, well no hairdo necessary. We were off.
Did I mention that we were on a tight budget? No money for new dresses? Well, as God would have it, He provided some treasures from their closet as He sometimes does. My oldest found something suitable (Never wore it before, wasn't perfect...but okay), my second oldest daughter found a hand-me-down dress that suited her perfectly. It was casual enough to wear with flats and we happened to have some that were a perfect match. (She was lookin' good.) Then my third daughter scored a great find from the dress closet...a beautiful, pink and white polka dot chiffon summer dress, one that still had the tags on it from a shopping trip in 2006. We bought it at Nordstrom's in the San Francisco area when we were going to a wedding...it wasn't a perfect fit yet, so we bought it anyway and held onto it for later. Boy...was it cute...a 1950's style polka dot dress with a little flare to it and heck...it was the only thing in our house that had been purchased at Nordstrom's...so it had to be special, right? That leaves the baby girl, our sweet four year old who fit perfectly in a spring dress that had only been worn once before...and no one had ever seen it...so we were set! No money spent! Woohoo!
Now, I am not the kind of mom to perfectly primp each child before church. I might say "Umm, no...not that outfit" but other than that...they are free to dress themselves appropriately and do their own hair. I don't usually fuss over those details, mainly because I don't have the time or the energy between loads of laundry (finding clean underwear on a Sunday is usually mission enough), breastfeeding, and trying to remember to brush my teeth. (Tip...minty fresh gum in purse as backup!) I know that some moms would be appalled as they feel that how neatly dressed and groomed their kids are is a reflection of their parenting, and they must put on a good show. I say, WYSIWYG*. *What you see is what you get. We aren't perfect, we aren't always happy, we aren't always even presentable...but if we are together and we are at church, we are two steps ahead, right? I mean, how many times have you survived the argument on the way to church, stepped out of the car to realize you forgot your Bibles, barely got your makeup on during the car-ride, and had to resort to Sunglasses as a hair clip? As a comedian once put it, by the time we get to church (9 people) we don't need a sermon, we need a medal!
With that explanation, let me say that after finding my FREE Easter clothes for the girls, and the somewhat cute pony tails and everyone showered and teeth brushed...oh, and we ALL had our Bibles, I was feeling pretty good about myself. I was thinking, "Check me out. And I didn't spend a dime. You?" I was also thinking, I hope the grandparents are here to see how cute we are. (I even managed to wear a bright spring aqua blue shirt over my usual black spring wardrobe...see previous post...and matching blue shoes!) Again...I was puffing up. God, however, in His infinite wisdom in the book of Psalms says, "Don't brag on yourselves, let others do it for you." Hey...I was still safe, I never said a word to anyone. But that wasn't it. He knows the condition of our hearts. As a man (or woman) purposes in his(her) heart, so he(she) is. So I was. I was proud. It probably was written on my face. Is that so wrong? Probably not, but again...God knows how to deal with all of our issues, right? Don't answer that. Let me just illustrate it for you.
It was a great service. We enjoyed the fellowship of friends and before you knew it we were picking up the kids. Again, I beamed with pride as I picked up my girls. "Tell your teacher thank you and Happy Easter!" The girls: "Thank you." (Welling up with more pride, I couldn't help it. "Aren't they sweet?," I thought.) Awwww. We wrangled all seven kids back into the car and were on our way home. "That was all worth it," I thought. "All of the trouble of dressing them up AND doing their hair."
Lest you think I missed the lightening bolt of conviction, read on. We made a quick stop on the way home. My husband ran into the store as I waited with the kids in the car. I looked over at my third daughter (Nordstrom dress) tipped over and sleeping in the drivers seat, and there it was. Staring me right in the face like a V8 slap....just under the pink polka dot chiffon...laying neatly on the satin underneath...ta da!
A four inch security tag! You know, the kind that only the store can take off? Suddenly I remembered why that dress had hung for 2 years unwarn...we had never taken it back to Nordstrom to have it removed...I mean would they accept a San Francisco receipt from months back...or would they think...Shoplifter? Can you see it, I parade 7 kids through the Biltmore Shopping Center (Not on your life!), not to buy anything, but to have a precariously placed and suspiciously unremoved HUGE plastic tag removed! Yeah, right. But wait, I had one last hope...so I asked my daughter, "Honey, did anyone see that tag on your dress?" (Hoping for the correct answer.) My daughter, "Uh huh, I showed it to ALL of my friends!"
Conviction. (Do nothing out of selfish ambition or empty conceit!)
Embarrassment. (Now the WHOLE church thinks we have resorted to shoplifting!)
Humiliation. (Yep, 7 kids, must be hard times.)
Lord, I get it. "Let him who boasts, boast about this: that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight," Jeremiah 9:23-25
I am boasting in this: In God's kindness, justice and righteousness, He did not allow us to parade our accidental hardware around campus on an actual Easter Sunday! Thank you God!
We are currently accepting donations to supplement our state funded health care and food stamps. (The beauty of all of this is that you think I'm kidding.) Wink.
Conviction. (Do nothing out of selfish ambition or empty conceit!)
Embarrassment. (Now the WHOLE church thinks we have resorted to shoplifting!)
Humiliation. (Yep, 7 kids, must be hard times.)
Lord, I get it. "Let him who boasts, boast about this: that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight," Jeremiah 9:23-25
I am boasting in this: In God's kindness, justice and righteousness, He did not allow us to parade our accidental hardware around campus on an actual Easter Sunday! Thank you God!
We are currently accepting donations to supplement our state funded health care and food stamps. (The beauty of all of this is that you think I'm kidding.) Wink.
2 comments:
Been there done that with those stupid security tags. Something about the "security" is lacking when we are walking out the door with those things still attached. LOL Trust me, no one at all thinks you stole that dress. Too funny.
P.S. A set of pliers has helped in the past. Sean's getting quite good at removing those things. (What a claim to fame!) How I've managed to get home with them still on the clothes 5-6 times now is beyond me!!
You made me laugh so hard today I have almost cried! Thank you for the comments on my blog! I love comments, they are like crack for the blogger! I am hooked on comments and can't get enough!
Wow 8 Kids you are my new hero! How many girls and how many boys?
If I get knocked up this month I will be due Christmas Eve! Best Christmas present ever!
You are really funny, keep writing and I will keep reading!
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