Memories. (this stuff is not for the faint of stomach)...lol
During a recent visit with my mom (discussing memories), I was reminded of an incident that happened a while ago. An incident that I am sure every mother can relate to. While sharing our stories, I didn't realize how funny it actually was (time has a way of making some things funnier). At the time of this incident, it was NOT funny...but you know...I am sure if God didn't laugh initially, His angels were.
My husband is a hunter. During a hunting season, he left for a short hunting trip. His trips don't bother me. The kids and I watch a couple extra movies and eat pot pies instead of spaghetti. Not a big deal, I don't mind.
Well, on a specific day while Tim was gone, we had a rough day...and I was TIRED. Supper time came and I loaded the kids in the truck....we decided on a local drive-thru. I DID NOT want to cook...and the kids were wound up.
We drove through the drive-thru, and headed to a local playground. Eating...and expending energy....(multi-tasking)...check, check. Good plan. BUT, we FORGOT to go potty...HOW did we manage that?
This specific playground is wonderful. Lots of tall leafy trees and grass. Very pretty. However, the parking lot is a distance from the playground (making a speedy retreat difficult). There are also no public restrooms.
We hike to the playground, sit down at the lone picnic table and spread out our food. We pray...and the kids run for the equipment. I am TIRED, but glad to have food and entertainment for the kids.
"Mom!", one of my kids frantically yells. "I have to go poop!!!!!" "Oh no", I think to myself. There is a certain pitch to a child's voice when "something" is seriously wrong. And...I detected that pitch. And...there are NO bathrooms. We're in a public park. The food is on the picnic table...we are a ways from the truck...and trying to drag my other two from their coveted perches on the monkey bars in the attempt to drive back to the restaurant would be too time consuming. ARGH! What do I do??? Well, I will only say one thing..."praise God for restaurant food bags"....and napkins. Ugh....and hand wash. A little TMI...sorry.
We had conquered it..and found a dumpster. I wiped the sweat off my brow. Wow!!
I sat back down, and applied my second dousing of hand sanitizer. All was well. Until.........
A minute later, a second child frantically yells, "Mom!!! I have to poop!!!!" Are you kidding me???? Fatigue and weariness had established themselves and I decided to allow one tear freedom. How am I going to handle this??? I have no more food bags! "Lord, please show me what to do!"
My frantic child comes running to me, expecting me to know what to do. "Mommy, I gotta go poop!!!" I knew this needed dealt with timely. It's funny how God, when you feel out of resources, shows you He's got more. He's the "Provider"...of EVERYTHING...including toileting necessities. Yes, we were out of food bags, but not totally without hope. I'll skip details, but say we dealt with it (with tidy cleanliness even) And I have to say creativity was not exclusive to Pinterest. God heard my small plea for assistance, and answered me. I was again so thankful for the extra napkins.
I finally sat back down at the table...with a much smaller appetite, and a half bottle of hand sanitizer. Life was back under control...sigh.....Until....
"Mom!" My first child hollers (I lose it)..."I gotta go pee!!!" I can handle pee better than the first...but still.... Seriously??? "Why couldn't you have done it all at the same time??" My child flies to me as I sit crying at the picnic table..."Mom, why are you crying, I gotta go potty!" I snap out of it, and get creative once more. This time things are slightly easier. I really don't cry often, but provoked by fatigue I found myself wallowing in self pitty.
Afraid to sigh relief, I sit at the picnic bench and wait (my hand sanitizer bottle only a third full now). I dare not ask who else has to go....I know better than that. My recently sanitized children laugh and play while a table full of food sits before me. I am somehow not hungry...but I am happy. I am reminded that even when I am tired, my husband's not home, things look impossible and I am out of resources, God isn't....And, my EVERY circumstance is important to Him (even my children's toileting needs). Its sometimes funny to me the situations in which God teaches us things. He brings us to the end of our "rope", to show us its really not the end....and He's capable of immeasurably more.
The rest of our evening was great. The kids played. I even hauled out my camera and took some memory shots. Our tiresome, stressful start was forgotten. All ended well. And....no one would ever even know we'd been there. :)
