6:10 a.m. Flight and Work Friends (who are friend friends)

Nothing like a mid-week wake-up at 4 a.m. for a 6:10 a.m. flight. Ahh, work travel. Yes, I earn points and yes, I get peanuts and a free drink every once in a while, but waking up in the 4s ain't making it fun.

This week is one of those plum ol' busy weeks. With the usual activities of school, work, tumbling, horse riding, gymnastics, laundry and making dinner, we had a couple of new entrants on the schedule. The familiar bounce of high school basketball made it's way back. With that, we get an out-of-town tournament. Not for me, but for G. (Hey, that rhymes). Also, Chris and I head to Lubbock for his Red Raider orientation. Guns Up? Wreck 'em? New slogans to learn and a new drive to learn.

Easy to solve those traveling parent issues because I have and a sister in town and some amazing babysitters. Someone to get the Camille to gymnastics with Caroline in tow, check (thanks Jessica). Someplace for the girls to spend the night Thursday, check (thanks Julie and Andy). Someone to watch the girls Friday p.m. until Chris and I arrive home, check (thanks Avery and Natalie).  Joy that my children are being taken care of and tended to. Whew.

But, wow. That's a lot of planning to put into play. Finding the people to help is almost the easiest step. Again, I'm super blessed because I have a sister, a bevy of babysitters and my parents in town. I can usually, almost pretty much always, find someone to help drive, go, watch, etc. Now, I'm jinxed, right?!

It's the other stuff which ranges from the letter with the insurance card lining out the attendees to my children can help with medical decisions in my absence to packing an overnight bag. Oh, but wait, there's school and activities. That means lunch stuff needs to make its' way to my sister's house and the clothes and the hair bobs. Oh, and the Advent calendars because that started today and my girls are not missing a piece of chocolate on day 2 (in the morning, don't judge).

It also means leaving notes and checks and keys and lists for the sitters. And, it means texts galore. Yeah, I over prepare. Have you read this blog?

Oh, and the packing and planning for Chris and I to get out of here -- hoping I have the latest shot record for this orientation and really know how to make this drive to a new place.

Can you understand why the 6:10 a.m. flight really didn't come at the ideal time?

I'm going on an OK amount of sleep from last night but know a six-hour drive will sap some of that energy. But I've planned a stop along the way where Chris and I can eat.

In a Christmas miracle-like fashion, I did get a fourth part yesterday and each day this week. I watched a little TV most nights, read and the best fourth part was last night on the return flight home (delayed until 8:05 p.m. -- it was a loooong work day).

I traveled with two work friends who are also my friend friends. We haven't sat on the same row on a flight in a while and it was pure joy. We had good gossip to cover (I prayed for forgiveness last night) and work stuff to discuss. So productive, so fun. We laughed hard. Like I had tears rolling down my cheeks at one point. We even dressed a like yesterday - black and white. Dresses and skirts and we usually are the pants' travel crowd -- which would have been black by the way.

Earlier in the work day, I did have lunch with a work friend who is a friend friend. Man, if she would have been on that flight home, we would have truly been in hysterics -- but she would have had to sat on our laps or across the aisle and we would have shared our crazy all over the place. She was wearing black and white, too, by the way. And, a dress. Wow, that's nuts.

With all the planning for this busy week and the work trip, my perfect fourth part was at a work lunch and a work flight home. No cocktails were involved but because we were all a wee bit tired, the laughs and the stories flowed instead. To let you in on how trusting these friendships are, one of my travel mates grabbed my phone to go through my Facebook to find something (maybe someone!?). No worries.

Please know, all four of us have had tough times with each other. Strained relationships and difficult conversations have played out between us. And, we still are friends. I trust the three of them on any and all projects at work. I trust them with confidential information about my work life.

I also trust them enough to ask them to watch my girls and hold the letter of medical decision making. I could easily add them to my bevy of babysitters. They would do it. Planning would be required as they all go in many directions themselves with their families and their home lives. It could be done.

Those are some good friends. Even at 6:10 a.m. (which by the way, all of them took later flights -- one even the night before -- thanks for that solo flight at the crack of dawn?!) and at a work lunch and at a delayed night flight home.

Guess what? They all encouraged me for this six-hour drive I make today and are praying me safely through it. And, most importantly, praying me through this chapter and latest change in my life.

Good friends. Friend friends,

FAFSA and Christmas Lights

What do you do the weekend after Thanksgiving? Those last days before school starts up again, before life and after school activities kick in? Those days that are the front end of the four weeks or so before Christmas -- a whole other set of requirements of shopping, wrapping, partying, decorating and coordinating schedules. Feels like a lot of hoping and praying for fourth parts. Sounds like a lot of organizing.

First things first, a FAFSA for the current school year (yeah, 2016-2017). Don't judge. Yes, I'm just filling this thing out today. Filling out this form which shows me we get $0 from the federal government -- must be Trump's fault, right? (Had to do it -- no political responses necessary. Go with the joke, people.)

For about, let's see, eight months, completing the FAFSA has been on my to-do lists. On the chalkboard cabinet above the cookbooks and on the pantry calendar and on the paper to-do list I carry around with me. Such motivation. Such reminder. And, yet, it's November 27, 2016. The school year is halfway over. And, my college student managed to attend a local community college without the FAFSA. Oh, but wait, he can't officially apply for scholarships for his new college which he will attend in the spring without this FAFSA for the half-way completed school year.

So much for planning. I mean, how did this slip by me? I know. I do. His community college cost was so, so low, we didn't need financial aid. Sweet mercy. I mean, if your child does not have a college affiliation, nor a scholarship to a certain college, nor any sort of idea what they want to do -- go to a community college. I'm oversharing here, but we paid $1010 for 15 hours. Yes, you read that right -- $1010. That's it. There were book costs, but that's not significant when you take some online courses and can rent through amazon.com.

Now, reality is setting in and we have to pay quite a bit more (maybe add a zero to the end of the aforementioned dollar amount -- God keeps us humble) -- so we need the FAFSA. By the way, the FAFSA will officially get us $0, but we need the info for scholarships -- which maybe we will receive? (Read that in a tone of confusion, plus contemplation with a touch of sarcasm.)

While I'm enjoying digging around for our 2015 tax return, my son's social security number and the FSA ID (Which why isn't it FAFSA!? Why another acronym? Details.), my family is decorating the front yard and hanging the outdoor Christmas lights. I believe I heard them singing a Christmas carol (prompted by my brother-in-law's exuberance and a playlist).

Great planning resulted in our trees going up yesterday and our outside being decorated today. G willingly (or maybe just did) pulled down Christmas from the attic Friday morning with Chris (great planning because Chris had to be at work and that kid sleeps until the last minute). And, I took care of a meeting early yesterday morning so I could get home and work on the decorations. And, we got up going this morning (OK, around 10 a.m.) so the girls and G could take care of the outside.

This all amounts to some serious fourth part very early in the day today. It's a Christmas miracle.

Yes, we have to take care of grocery shopping, some ironing and some meal prep for the week. But, we got it done.

Yes, the early bird gets the worm. But, the late bird doesn't get anything from FAFSA forms.

Kombucha and One Suitcase

Today is finally here. When we started the countdown, it was over 150 days away. Now, it is a few hours. Lots of planning took place to get here.

You see, today, the girls get to visit their best little friend who moved this summer. We are headed to Kansas City. Oh, and I get to see one of the best mom friends I've ever had! (Yay, me!)

Details that it is around 40 degrees there. Grateful that our friends up there have plenty of scarves, gloves, hats and coats to go around.

So, we decided to take this trip way back in the summer. Flights are really cheap when you buy way ahead of time (hmmm, that's a concept). I knew eventually I would have to think through the packing situation. Since I'm going solo with the girls, I also knew I only would want to take one suitcase. G pulled down the big one and everything fit (including four American Girl dolls). I think it is under 50 pounds -- praying, crossing my fingers, hoping, really praying. There is no way I could have two suitcases, two backpacks, a carry on for me, my purse and two seven-year-old girls all in tow. Again, praying, crossing my fingers, hoping, really praying that this suitcase weighs less than 50 pounds.

Kudos to me for booking a flight that leaves mid-afternoon. Typically, the non-stop flights are either at 6 a.m. or 9 p.m. This go-round, we got a 2:30 p.m. No rushing around. No waking up in the middle of the night to get ready to leave. No making sure every single thing is absolutely packed the night before.

Now, let's get to the fourth part planning.

I have lists for packing. I have, by day and potential activity, a list for me and for the girls. I started this ages ago when G, Chris and I traveled. OK, I didn't do a list for G. Chris now does packing lists for himself. Rest in that for a minute. I'm so proud.

Another important component in our packing, readying for trips approach is the suitcase review. This requires allocation of time. After fully packing, based on the aforementioned packing lists, I pull everything out for a review. This is when I whittle down, add to or refold. As a result, we rarely forget things (boy, I hope this doesn't jinx me) and we only pack what we need.

In preparation for today, I did every bit of laundry I could last night. I waited until last night because I wanted to make sure every stitch of everything was clean and I needed to match back to the packing lists.

And, viola, we've packed and reviewed with time to spare because fourth part today is not only getting to go on this trip, but also catching a bit of the Baylor football game which begins at 11 a.m. Please dear Jesus, find favor on this team and grant us a win. I mean three losses in a row. And, it's senior day. And, poor Seth is hurt and out for the season (and he's a senior). Please, let us be winning when I get on the plane (and off).

Thanks for sharing in that prayer with me.

All this planning, organizing, packing, reviewing, laundry-ing, has resulted in a bit of an imbalance in my gastrointestinal system. I promise I won't go into detail, but will simply share my solution. Delicious kombucha. Those lovely probiotics and live cultures are working magic. The flavor I prefer is sparkling ginger. It is refreshing to the palate and truly refreshes the gut. Here's hoping kombucha does the trick to put me back on track.

This trip is a true fourth part. We won't have many scheduled activities except play and catch up. I think we're visiting a museum and a park or two, plus trying Kansas City BBQ. Other than that, my packed laptop will provide me opportunity to work on photo books. Yeah, that's relaxing and something I like to do in the fourth part.

Along with catching up with a friend, drinking cocktails (or beer!) and watching three little friends reunite -- those are some great fourth part activities for which I am grateful for this Thanksgiving season.

Photo Books and Homecoming

When you take pictures on six devices on summer vacation and then you try to put together a photo book on a Sunday afternoon, it doesn't go as quickly as you would hope. And, when you went on vacation almost three months ago, memory of restaurant names and activities don't come back as quickly as you would hope.

Aaahhh, hope. That should be in the title of today's post -- Hope and Quickly (the two shall ne'er meet).

The plan for today was rest, recovery and be at home with family. Since it is Sunday, a trip to the grocery store and meal planning are also a part of the day. Oh, and some cleaning and laundry are in order. Because Halloween is around the corner, G climbed up into the attic to pull out the bag of spooky decor and the girls spider-webbed and hung ghoul-y characters on the trees.

The Sunday was full of first, second and third part activities. Included in my second part was knocking out the San Diego summer vacation photo book. Now that the pictures from the old laptop were moved on to the new laptop and new pictures were downloaded on to the new laptop (prior activities for third parts), I was ready to make a book.

Oh, yeah, I've only downloaded pictures from the DSLR. I've five other devices to grab pics from . . . and two of those devices are not at home right now. They are off with their owners -- getting a car washed and working. Downloading pictures is not hard, but it is time consuming and I just don't want to take up time today downloading pictures. Ugh.

That means, I can't complete the book. I've put together over 20 pages in the photo book -- clever commentary along with stunning photos of one of the best family vacations ever taken. And, I'm, Not. Done. I have about 30 more pages of pictures already downloaded with some blanks along the way waiting for those future-downloaded pictures. (How many times have I written the word 'download' in its various tenses?)

I had such hopes. Hopes that would have been handled quickly. No and no. Crushed hopes. Nothing quickly. Just 20 simple pages of a vacation gone by.

But, man, it was a great vacation. Looking at the pictures and the notes from the trip are really making me smile. Yes, I'm catching myself smiling and laughing as I put the book together. I'm calling the girls to come in and look at the pictures. I'm telling G 'remember this' stories. (If Chris were here, I would show him pictures of his hair -- oh, that hair. He said he was cutting it this week. One can dream. One can . . . hope. And, that cut cannot come quickly enough,)

We had not taken a full-family summer vacation that didn't involve a basketball tournament since the girls were a year old and we went to Cabo. That's too many years for the Adams not to be out of Texas where there is water and beaches and potentially fishing. That's too much time between planning a day's activities and researching restaurants. That's too long for our family to be our family. Eating together, shopping together and really having fun together -- just us. The five of us. No separate cars to take us to separate places. No friends calling to hang out and meet for a drink. No schedules other than the carefully planned itinerary (I've used the same format for years).

San Diego was beautiful. The weather amazing. The meals delicious. The activities fun.

A fantastically, wonderful vacation.

Something about being together either in a new place or a familiar place. We go to Port Aransas a few times every year, we go out to eat together at least once a month, we attend events together as they present. Our time together is limited, yes, but we do find time to be a family together.

I visited a familiar place this weekend. It was Baylor homecoming. While seeing the bonfire, watching the parade and tailgating would have rounded out a weekend in Waco, I could only get to the football game (and, really, that's all I need for my Baylor fix). We rolled into town right before kick-off, poured a 'walkie' -- actually it could be a 'roadie' as we take it on the bus that drives us to the stadium from our parking spot -- and strolled into the stadium. Baylor had scored by the time we sat.

I also learned a dear friend was at the game before we sat. Through messenger and text messages, I tried to arrange meet-ups with him and other friends during this time of Homecoming. A familiar time, a familiar place in a new stadium requires some organizing. So glad for technology and Facebook and messaging.

I successfully met up with my dear friend who I had not seen in about 20 years. It was such a pleasure and such a joy to catch up. Carving out those few minutes during a game that we were easily winning was not hard, but it did take time. It took some quick planning and some quick typing. We laughed and of course, took a picture. It was posted and will be such a fun memory. One picture is much easier to keep up with than the hundreds I have from San Diego.

I didn't meet up with my other friends who were at the game. I was satisfied with the one visit. Because we were in Waco, at a Baylor game and we were winning by a lot, my season-ticket holder partners and I made our way over to the George's tent for a drink and a burger. Prices are way higher than when we used to eat at George's but the fun and nostalgic familiarity are still the same. Yeah, I drank a Deep Eddy Cranberry with Sprite instead of a Big O, and had waffle fries instead of greasy regular ones. It was still George's -- still the green and white striped tent.

Only one picture from the game with my friend, Robert. A memory for a while.

Only hundreds from the trip to San Diego.

Hopeful I finish the book, yes, but do not want the memories to go quickly.

Hope and Quickly, not really.

How about Hope and Everylasting?

Little House in the Big Woods and Dark Nails

I have a collection of books from my childhood. National Velvet, Secret Garden, Little Women, Heidi and Carol from the Country are favorites of mine from many, many years ago.

Toward the end of the last school year, I started reading from those familiar friends to the girls before bed. We tried to do a chapter at a time -- truthfully, some nights we only made it through a few pages. We started with The Hundred Dresses, went to Heidi and then Carol from the Country. The latest was Little House in the Big Woods. Ah, Laura, Mary, Pa, Ma and don't forget baby Carrie.

My girls could not believe that sugar snow and dolls made out of leaves and branches could keep children entertained all day long. And, how could listening to the fiddle each evening be entertainment. Well, the Adams girls bought in to the Big Woods country life. And, they bought into it hard. Talk of threshers, venison and calico happened throughout the days and weeks it took us to get through the 13 chapters. The black and white line drawings in my copy of the book helped them focus on the story. Not every page had a picture . . . the story required imagination. Imagine, that?

My first, second and third parts of the day all work toward a fourth part for me, yes. But, I'll tell you reading to the girls during that last part of the third part is something to treasure. It's been a pleasure re-visiting these stories I loved and read and read and re-read and re-read while I was growing up. It's been fun talking through the stories with the girls. Plus, some of the books were from the Devine library where my grandmother served as librarian and I spent many a summer shelving and sorting books. While I'm not quite sure how I ended up with Devine library books -- out of circulation -- I know it was a pay-it-forward, future gift from my grandmother to share with the great-granddaughters she didn't get to meet.

It seems when I settle into my fourth part of the day after I've read to the girls, I feel a bit calmer and more grounded. That's the best start to a fourth part, right? Sitting and pausing, relaxing and enjoying the activity set ahead for me.

Tonight, we finished Little House . . . knocked out that last eight pages in Chapter 13. I had stacked up a few 'nexts' -- National Velvet and Heidi Grows Up. After I said, 'the end,' Camille let out the sweetest sigh. I knew that meant she felt it end and had enjoyed the book. When a bit of time soaking up the last few pages set in, she said, 'Can we read Heidi Grows Up next?'

It worked. They want the next part. They want to continue the reading. They are connecting to the stories I loved so much when I was their age.

All this after a late arrival home tonight (leftovers were already in order for dinner) and a dash to the nail salon because I travel the next couple of days and the nails were looking really ragged. Not an ideal third part on a day that is an activity-free, no football game day. A 'you can get your fingernails and toenails painted, too' promise helped get everyone out the door for a 6:30 p.m. walk-in appointment.

The girls picked four colors each -- two for the toes, two for the fingers. All four for each of them were neon shades of orange, pink, green, purple, pink and blue. Full-on, can't let summer go kind of colors.

I picked a dark, slate gray. Summer, over. Fall, here. Since I'm traveling to a new place Friday, spending time with work people who don't know me yet, I went with a more subtle color, rather than my dark-Baylor green or sapphire blue.

Then, Nancy picked me. The nail tech was new to me. And, it was meant to be that she and I were paired up for the hour. She shared her story with me and for a third part that was really a fourth part, I soaked up every moment and didn't want the hour to end. Even my girls patiently sat without electronics, books or crayons while I listened to her story.

She's from Vietnam. She's been here three years. She's a single mom. Her middle-school-aged daughter and high-school-aged son just came to America six months ago. Six months ago. They were separated from each other for two and a half years. Then, her children come here and all she does is work for them.

She shared that her son has adjusted a bit more quickly and has found his niche -- computers and science. He has permission (she said it was a permit) to use his phone in class so he can have the teacher's words translated.

Her daughter has struggled. She has made friends, but the homework drives her to tears most evenings. Nancy said she is in tears along with her because she can't help. At the beginning of the school year, Nancy met with the school counselor who said she should email the teachers. Nancy said she doesn't know English well enough to write and spell. She tried and the teachers could not understand her daughter's needs.

Last night, Nancy had meet the teacher night at the middle school. She said she met the young science teacher and knew that things would be OK. The science teacher said she would help, tutor and be available to her daughter whenever she needed her. Nancy said this teacher is in her second year of teaching.

Nancy wrapped up the story (after the third coat of polish) by telling me she explains to her children that they have so much to be thankful for here in America. Schools, freedoms and opportunity. She also tells them they have to work harder than American children but they can achieve and be successful. She kept touching her chest where her heart is and teared up and she spoke to me. I teared up, too.

Chris had an assignment earlier this week about what it means to be an American in light of politics and the topic of immigration law. He wrote about the refugees and immigrants he went to high school with and that being an American was about opportunity and chances and freedom.

Nancy believes that and is passing that to her children. I don't know if they are going to be citizens, if they have visas or green cards or what. I do know they are productive and working hard to be successful.

The third part today, which was supposed to be an errand became a lesson for my girls and a reflection for me. I know teachers touch lives (my husband, right? My dad, my sisters, my brothers in law!) and I know some students work harder than others. Yet, this story hit me. Nancy's story -- right down the street from me -- is as real as real can be. It made me stop, take a breath and be grateful for all I have.

At the end of Little House in the Big Woods, Pa fiddles and sings 'shall auld acquaintance be forgot, and never brought to mind.' Laura asks what days of auld land syne are and Pa replies with 'they are the days of long ago.'

Laura continues to listen and looks around the little house and thought to herself  'this is now.' 

"She was glad that the cosy house, and Pa and Ma and the firelight and the music, were now. They could not be forgotten, she thought, because now is now. It can never be a long time ago.'

Now is now. Nancy's family is here with her now. My family is here with me now. I'm typing with dark gray finger nails and watching the third part of the RHONY reunion. I look around my cozy house, see my husband, hear my son, know my girls are tucked asleep and they won't be forgotten. First part, second part, third part or fourth are all just parts of now. Parts of each day. Each part won't be forgotten.

Now is now.

Braids and 290

Today was a travel day for work. It was an easy day trip that was a simple drive up the busiest highway on this earth, IH 35. Even leaving home two hours prior to my meeting (a trip that should only take about 45 minutes to one hour) had me arriving only a handful of minutes early. Yeah, I arrived at 9:21 a.m. for a 9:30 a.m. meeting. I left my house at 7:33 a.m. I was in standstill traffic for oh, about half the journey.

(Those of you who live in Houston or Austin are saying to yourself right now -- cry me a river Petri.)

(And, in case you were wondering, I was headed to Austin. I even used my beloved shortcut taking a back road to get to the very unfriendly IH 35 and that cut little time off the trip.)

(I think IH in IH 35 should stand for something such as I'm in Hell.) (Clever, I know.)

Done with parenthetical statements for the moment. It's my way. OK.

To get out of the house by 7:33 a.m. I have to be on my game. I mean along with gas being in the car (praise God, G had filled it up this weekend), and having a Styrofoam for coffee, I had to be dressed in work clothes (no jeans), hair done and bags packed.

Detail that I found out about night before -- an early morning meeting taking place for G Adams which means I needed to take the girls to school. Hold up, wait a minute. I had to be ready and out the door at 7:06 a.m. . . . precision, yes. Avoiding the long line of cars by the patrols, yes.

Boy, that's an earlier wake-up call, an earlier get up and go, an earlier get moving -- to get out of the door. To take the girls to school. And, to get on the road by 7:30 a.m. (or 7:33 a.m.).

Darn, long hair that is day-two clean and needs to be curled and doesn't require the standard run-out-the-door ponytail. Ugh.

And, rats for the having to wear real work clothes which means I had to wear travel shoes for driving and then bring real shoes for working. That may sound like I have a job that requires a certain type of shoe. I work at a bank. I have to wear pumps -- or something like that. Today, I chose a lovely pair of chunky heel shoes with an open toe. I had to tuck in a blouse into a skirt. My first-world work problems are real people.

All this to say, I hate IH 35 and knew I would not be driving home that way. Fortunately, my afternoon lunch meeting was out a bit and led me to a lovely back road named 290 that took me to a road I mentioned before, 281. The country version of 281. Not the in the middle of SA traffic 281 that I hate, hate, hate.

This 290 was as pleasant as a drive could be. For a moment, I thought I was on a lovely Sunday afternoon drive (remember, people used to do those) and could stop at shops, wineries and distilleries (yeah, I passed a few of those on the way home) along the way. I couldn't because it's Wednesday, not Sunday. It's a school night. I've third part to do and a fourth part to have.

I made mental notes to go back this way one day with friends or family. Nice little stops along the way. I'm thinking a future fourth part in the middle of the day might be a Sunday drive up 281 to 290.

My go-to 'part' planning didn't initially take into consideration the 290 route, but after discussion with co-workers and the realization I could be home by 5 p.m. in a normal, unharried, unfrenetic mood -- 290 won. Bye IH 35. I won't see you for a while. (Wait, I have to visit you Saturday when we drive to Waco to see my Bears! That's a happy drive with a Styrofoam cup filled with something other than coffee. Relax, I know open container laws. I have a driver. Oh, wait it's G. Does that count? He has a commercial license?)

Back on topic.

So my third part today was nice. Eased into it. Had a plan for dinner -- thanks Blue Apron and chicken I remembered to defrost. Girls had finished homework for the most part. No real chores, if you will, for me to take care of this evening.

The bath. The hair washing. Not me, my girls. Two of them, in case you forgot. That means tomorrow morn, they can wear their hair down. No, no curling or anything Pinterest-y fancy like that. But we do try braids. And, when I write try, I mean try. With a straight haired daughter and a curly haired daughter, the braiding techniques are different. Very different. I mean, quite different. Super different. Yes, different.

The straight hair should be easier to pick up the strands and braid away. Yet, the hair is a bit slippery and when the braider doesn't really know the French braid or any other nationality braid, it's tough. I usually go with the 'how about pigtails' approach.

The curly hair usually 'sticks' in place and I can fake the style.

Like 35, I hate the Pinterest videos of braids. The pictures looks so simple, the technique so quick and yet, I only have two hands. I have a friend who can get her daughter's hair done so beautifully. Wait, she has two daughters (first grade and preK - and, a baby boy). And, each Sunday, she and her girls stroll in with the most darling braids. I wish. I need to learn the skill. I've many, many days ahead requiring hair styles and braids.

I have a major amount of envy for good braiders and those chipper early risers who get things done. I don't hate them like I do IH 35, but I struggle with being so happy for their skills and being so frustrated over my lack of skills.

In my devotion this morning, it spoke to not having guilt as a driver of moving toward Jesus. Guilt shouldn't motivate us to follow Him, love others, accept His grace and mercy. We should move toward Him, because guess what, He wants us to -- regardless of our skill and knowledge. He wants our pure simple faith to drive us toward Him.

All the attempts on our own, all the tries we put forth are just that -- human attempts and tries. How about I put my faith in Him, accept my place and what I can do, and then, be a mom who can laugh about her attempts and not compare.

And, take the scenic drive home because there were some pretty amazing, God only created sights along that way -- and no cursing other drivers and 35.

No guilt. Just faith. Maybe a few braids along the scenic route.

Thursday Night Lights and House Keys

We love high school football. We love college football. My husband loves the Dallas Cowboys but struggles each season to maintain the feeling.

Lots of football games to go to, lots of football games to listen to on the radio and lots of football games to watch on TV.

Scheduling.

This I know how to do. Obviously, each Lee and Baylor game gets entered on to the family calendar by mid-summer. And, we put game times and venues on our mobile calendars. I also put together the 'what Baylor tickets am I selling' schedule. It's a piece of paper slipped inside the season tickets packet. Not so fancy, but it works. (Oh by the way, I still am trying to sell the tickets to the September 24 Oklahoma State game. With a parking pass. Great seats. $100 each. Covered.)

As you know, we've not so many other fall activities in our house, but we do have that thing called life. The thing I have a first, second and third part of the day for -- each day. The list of which you are familiar --  including laundry, homework, meals, cleaning (we put our cleaning lady on hold -- good idea? Not sold yet, but we are saving money.)

Bedtimes, baths, hair washing, outfit planning and bed making. Projects and play time. And, the only scheduled activity is Camille's tumbling. (We cannot convince Caroline to participate in anything -- no acting, no singing, no tennis, no basketball -- yeah, I even went there.)

Friday high school games are a breeze. They begin at 7:30 p.m. which gives us plenty o' time to eat dinner, get dressed, fix hair and pack a big tote bag of goodies -- and, then get to the game in time to see G and sing the school song. (All before kick off thank you.)

Saturday high school games, even easier. We can do nothing all day and get to a 7 p.m. game no problem.

Saturday Baylor games require a bit of planning. Organizing a sitter for the girls, pulling together the tailgate food and beverages and loading up the car with all our needs (STYROFOAM CUPS!). But, in the end, it takes about three hours to get to Waco so we can figure out a Saturday. No other activities -- OK, G has to work most of those days -- but we've nothing else to do (except that cleaning of the house -- what was I thinking!!).

So what happens when there is a Thursday night football game and a Friday night Baylor game. Sell the Baylor tickets. Yeah, figured that out. Find the channel the game is on. Well, that was a challenge. I mean who knew there was a StufTV and that is the channel a sweet Baptist university plays on for their season opener.

Oh, the Thursday high school game. And, it's an away game. Not too far away -- just down the highway, but away enough, that we need to leave a bit earlier than usual to make the hello to G and school song singing. And, even with that earlier leave, you are up against a 7 p.m. kickoff and hitting SA traffic.

No worries. I'm a planner. I write a blog about it. I have calendars and check lists to prove I've got those skills.

Homework finished up earlier in the week. Game clothes planned for and laid out day before. Bath done the day before. Lunches put together early in the day. Dinner plans include a visit to the concession stand to snap up a hot dog and some nachos (with a side of candy).

But what about the late bedtime?

No planning can help you with that. Because that next morning comes really early. And, the 4000 percent humidity should have required a bath, but there is no time for that with Thursday Night Lights. Should have brought the PJs in the car. I used to do that when the girls were little. Missed that step in the planning.

Also, how do you handle the son who wants to stay later than you at the game and he rode with you? Well, you find him a ride -- easy to do because one of his best friends was at the game. Then, you see his house key in your car as you park which means you have to leave a house key under the mat -- at night!! -- until whatever time he decides to come in. And, that's late because he doesn't have class the next day and you really can't sleep until he gets home and because the KEY IS UNDER THE MAT.

I couldn't take any sleep aids and I also have this tendency to kind of stay awake until G gets home from the game -- which is later than my normal bedtime. He also didn't know the garage door had been fixed so he needed a house key, which he had, thankfully. Remember, KEY IS UNDER THE MAT for the son not the spouse.

Yes, we love football and we have the outfits and gear to prove it. And, we also usually have a sore throat or lost voice to show we had some big-time enthusiasm during the game.

I also love sleep. I love easy school mornings (hence the planning). I highly desire fourth parts which slip away from me with Thursday night high school games and Friday night Baylor games. Well, because, football.

With that in mind, it's Labor Day weekend so bonus, I have a stress free Saturday (no Baylor games to make me anxious) and an extra day Monday. I've got a lot of fourth part opportunity.

And, a lot of football watching.

Thank goodness, this upcoming weekend is a Friday night high school game (at a home stadium) and a Saturday mid-day start Baylor game. That's a fall. That's the football I love. That's my fourth part.