Collapse Day

First, some pictures that don't have anything to do with the subject of this post, but I wanted to include anyway because I never got around to posting them earlier.  These were taken about a week and a half ago, when our friends Steve & Claire were here and we went to Wildwood Park.

~ on one of the back roads behind our house, we saw this Mennonite girl demonstrating one of their forms of alternative transportation...instead of horses & buggies, sometimes they use bikes...zero emissions (not even horse manure!) and great exercise all at the same time  :)

~ at the park, we spread out our picnic supper close to this playground...close also to a horse & buggy parked at a hitching post nearby

~ here's a closer look at that horse & buggy...a lot of these horses are former racehorses, and I never get tired of seeing them...in my eyes, they're always beautiful

~ this was just a silly picture of Tobin that Jeff took that evening, his classic "I've almost got my thumb in my mouth and soon I'll clamp down and suck" look...priceless  :)

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On to the topic of the night...

Today I crashed.  After all the time and energy exerted to get ready for our California trip, go on the trip, return from the trip, readjust to Virginia life, entertain weekend guests, prepare for and attend an important church meeting last night, etc. -- after all of that, I woke up exhausted this morning, knowing that I had no pressing obligations for the day, and wishing that I could crawl right back into bed.  I dragged my way through the first hour of feeding Tobin and myself breakfast and helping Josiah and David with their breakfast and then wondered how I was going to make it until 9:00 AM when I could put Tobin back in bed for his morning nap.  Surprisingly, it was David who came to my rescue.  I put Tobin on the floor of the living room to scoot around while I reclined on the couch; and, without me even asking him, David did a SUPER job of hanging out with Tobin, scooting around with him, getting the animal dominoes out of the game closet for him (I did ask David to do this, and he happily complied), making him laugh, watching out for him if he went somewhere David didn't think he should go, and generally being a great buddy and big brother.  Josiah, meanwhile, was upstairs in his room playing with Legos--one of his current passions; and I, on the couch, was drifting in and out of sleep.  It wasn't the most restful sleep because I was keeping my ears (and sometimes my eyes) open if Tobin needed me; and once or twice, David called for me to do something for Tobin or to move him or something like that.  But it truly helped the time to go by better and faster until Tobin was ready for his morning nap.  Then I took a quick shower and hit the couch for a nice, long, peaceful nap myself.

I was so grateful for a few things: 1) that I didn't really have much that I HAD to do today, 2) that Josiah and David are old enough to be self-entertained and helpful, and 3) that I didn't even have to think about supper preparations because Sally invited us over for supper tonight!!  :)

It was so nice to be with Sally and her family (including Sally's older sister Gail and her son Bobby...Gail and I went to school together ages ago and we also have the same middle name!).  After catching up with Sally through blogging, it was great to spend time together in person and be able to flesh out the portrait I have of her family through the blog.  Jeff and Andrew, Sally's husband, delved deep into Hebrew and Greek Bible translation issues which is fascinating to both of them.  I enjoyed the scrumptious meal (complete with the cutest rolls--homemade, of course--in the shape of teddy bears for the children) and the fellowship.  Josiah and David liked all the new toys to play with, particularly Paul's tractor in the backyard that actually GOES when you drive it (on the way home, David decided that he and Josiah should save up their money to buy one of them...that would take them a while, but it's a wonderful goal!).  Tobin loved scooting around, of course, particularly in a playhouse made out of a big cardboard box that was in their living room.  It was a very pleasant evening for all of us--thank you, Sally!!  I just wish I would have brought my camera along.  :)

Most of all, I think I'm most grateful for Sally's desire to serve us in this way and the break that it truly gave me.  Proverbs 11:25 says, "He who refreshes others will himself be refreshed."  After tonight, I feel refreshed; and I pray that God sends along some divine refreshment for Sally and Andrew and their children, too!