One day last week, I had to take L for an x-ray of his adenoids as they appear to be the culprit behind the 'sleeping noises' that Odesco often complains about! L was quite fearful and convinced this was going to be a painful experience despite my reminders that he had many x-rays when he fell and broke his arm 2 years ago..."this is different!", he kept saying. We had to wait longer than anticipated but L entertained me with his chatter as he perused his well loved Lego catalog! Then, they called us back to another waiting area where we sat for an additional 15 minutes...I must say though that our boy was so very brave and self- controlled during the waiting and during the painless :) picture taking . He was very excited when the x-ray technician showed him the image of his head on the computer screen and especially impressed when she pointed to the screen to help us see the image of his adult teeth just waiting for the right time to emerge... L kept talking about his "hibernating teeth" throughout the day...funny boy! As we were literally exiting the foyer of the x-ray building my cell phone rang and it was P inquiring to see how much longer it would be...perfect timing as we were headed to the van and on our way home! Since P turned 12, he has begun to babysit for his siblings for short daytime spurts with very specific instructions and he informed me that overall, things were going well. I was grateful as the waiting room was jam packed and we sat for a long time...would have been a challenge to have all 6 of us in there! So, victories #1 and 2...L overcame his fear and the other kiddos were doing well obeying at home!
After a rushed lunch, we packed our load of swimming gear and were headed out to a friend's house for the afternoon. As everyone was already in the van, I did a quick look around ...I was too busy previously preparing to leave and didn't notice the mess until everyone was out of the house. The littles obviously had a bit of creative fun in my absence but the cut up pieces of string, blankets strewn about, and piles of crayons and markers were quite an eyesore! So, I went out to the van, instructed the big boys to bring in the trash cans and instructed Mercy, Odesco and G to come inside and clean up their mess before we left. Amazingly everyone cooperated and did just what they were told with NO complaining! This was cause for celebration as this is NOT the typical outcome!! Mercy later told me that as she was bringing an outfit back to her room where it belonged (she attempted to leave it on the stairs but I redirected her) that she asked herself, "What would Jesus do?" Victory #3 ...all the kiddos worked together without complaining and our Mercy is beginning to 'connect the dots' .(By the way, her Sunday school teacher had felt compelled to give Mercy a pin with this saying on Sunday so it definitely made an impact :)! After a fun time at the pool, we headed home and L and I had to go out for another appointment with the podiatrist to evaluate a bothersome wart on his big toe that was not responding to over the counter medication. L was very excited about this appointment because this toe has really been annoying him so off we went for a 5 pm doctor's visit. Before leaving for the appointment, I asked the girls to prepare the salad for dinner...they have done it with me numerous times and know how to do this safely - they were excited to be helping Mommy with dinner :)
L and I drove around the corner to the doctor' s office where we waited and waited. When L grew bored of the limited toys and puzzles in the kiddy area ,we worked on a fun Critical Thinking book we brought to pass the time...C called to see when we were coming home and I broke the news that we were still in the waiting room! He told me there were no issues but that they all had a surprise for me. I could hear giddy squeals in the background as Mercy, G, and Odesco were very busily at work~
Finally we were called back to the exam room and met by the podiatrist..."He was a very nice man", according to L! He 'trimmed' the bothersome area and there was quite a bit of bleeding which tends to make L think things are worse than they really are. This time I have to say though that it did look quite painful :( L sweetly gripped my hand as he whimpered,"It hurts, it really hurts" but there were no tears, no meltdowns and as I was able to, I tried to divert his attention away from his bleeding foot to the 'the very nice man'/doctor by having L talk about all sorts of things. He was quite a brave boy and made the doctor's job easy . It took several minutes for the bleeding to slow down...I was so proud of our little man as he hobbled out of the office:) Victory # 4!!
As soon as we pulled into the driveway, (after a quick run into the CVS for more medication for L's foot and a special treat for his bravery), the other kids exploded out of the front door and insisted that L and I close our eyes as we stepped inside. They eagerly led us by the hand into the kitchen before they let us open our eyes to see the big surprise : A fully set table complete with glass plates for all the kiddos (a big deal to the little ones!) , a tossed salad, a 'fruit platter' with grapes and nuts scattered on top for a 'fancy touch', apple sauce (they actually emptied several of the individual natural apple sauce containers into a big bowl!), a bowl of defrosted pineapple tidbits and finally carrots with dressing / 'dip'... the plan for the the main course was leftovers and they certainly completed the meal with their resourceful and creative side dishes! They were all talking (well, hollering !) at the same time and were so proud of what they had accomplished working together. Victory #5!!
Even the bloody trail throughout the kitchen and foyer from L's 'leaking foot' and the accidental sticky fluorescent pink spill of his prized strawberry milk could not steal away the joy as we celebrated the teamwork of our kiddos and the bravery of their brother. Later after everyone worked together to clean up L's bloody trail and quickly located bandages to cover his wound, L declared, "They sure are being nice to me..." Ahh, the joys of seeing our children loving one another and working together are priceless!
So there you have it...many evidences of God at work in our midst- nothing earth shattering, I know, but it boggles my mind to ponder that while He is sustaining the universe, He cares enough to make Himself known in the hum drum details of life! Great is His faithfulness!! Thanks for celebrating with us~ Love,
Mama B
The Big Surprise!!!
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