How To Have A Bad Day

It's been a bad week. Worse than normal. Monday through Wednesday I had a personal pity party. Here's how to have a really crappy day(s):

It first starts with a Jury Summons in the mail. Good grief, that piece of paper is annoying.

You drive downtown, which is always fun. The exit you're supposed to take is under construction, so you find yourself directed onto another freeway. You say lots of prayers. Out loud. And weave around downtown until you find the Courthouse.

You notice a convenient parking lot across the street. So, you pull in to take a look.
A man knocks on your window giving you his parking pass. He's paid for the space for the entire day and he's leaving early. You count your blessings and full uber lucky to this man. You park in his spot.

Jury Evaluation takes for-ev-er. Because, it just does. And count your lucky stars, you get picked to be on the jury. Good gracious, my insides were crying when that happened. You watch all the other lucky humans leave who didn't get picked.

At the end of the long, boring day, you walk to your car.
Only to find a boot on your tire and a Warning sticker that you didn't pay for the parking spot.
Time stands still and you just have a moment. Right there in downtown Houston.

You call the Boot Company and it takes them 25 minutes to get to you.
You explain, "The space was paid for. That gentleman was being so nice. I don't understand."
Boot man is patient, even when I grab his arm and start jumping up and down with dramatics. And then he takes the time to explain why I'm naive. Super.

He then tells me that I owe $133.25 to get the Boot removed. After catching my breath, I told him he'd have to call The Husband to let him know. He declined. And also tells me I should be grateful my car didn't get towed. Awesomeness. I wonder to myself if the $6 a day jury payment will cover this enormous parking charge.

He swipes my card and I'm on my way into the rush hour traffic of Houston.
20 minutes later, each of my kids is calling me with some kind of complaint. By the time Child #2 calls because she's mad at her dad, I lose it. I start crying.
Child #2 gets all sorts of alarmed and can't figure out how to get me to stop. She finally tells me that I probably just need to go to bed.
Amen.

Dinner and chocolate calmed me down some.
Just slightly.
Because I still had to go back for the next 2 days. It was grueling.
But this time, I made The Husband drive me. My parking days are over.

Something To Make

You know me. I redecorate my mantel often. Sometimes it stays for a while, but rarely. I usually switch it up every few weeks. Here's what we've got for August:

Do you see that clothespin wreath? Isn't it adorable?!
You can find the original and the directions HERE.
You must make it. Really. It took me about 45 minutes. And just an FYI- it's heavy. Hang with care.

Enjoy your weekend.
Be creative :)

Stuff On A Wednesday

1. We had Sister's Day. It was August 1st. It's our family tradition we started long ago to celebrate the beauty of having sisters. This is the first time it's fallen on a Saturday, so we let The Dad join us. Sister's Day turned into Family Day. Which is always my favorite way to spend time. We went to lunch and then a movie. Just the 5 of us. Together. The best.

And just an FYI- Child #1 cut off 15 inches of her hair. Now she looks like a preppy college girl.

2. Child #2 is now an official driver. Technically she's been driving for years. Now we just get to pay more for our car insurance.

3. I had one major goal this summer. To create a family art project. It's something I've wanted to do for years, and I finally bribed/threatened/begged everyone to cooperate.

I bought a huge frame from Goodwill and painted it. Then I purchased watercolor poster board/paper from Hobby Lobby and cut it to the size of the frame. I used a ruler to mark off the grid.

Each family member was assigned a time to paint squares. There were no rules, except to use the paint colors I had picked out. Once everyone was finished, I filled in the remaining open spots. It's now my favorite piece of art in the house.

4. I've been walking in the mornings. Every summer I get this idea that I need to get it together and be more active. So, I walk. During the hottest months of the year. It makes no sense.

Every morning I pass this tree.

It's losing it's leaves. In the middle of summer. It's got the seasons all mixed up. Leaves aren't supposed to fall until, you know, Fall.

I can't help but compare myself to this tree. I feel like I'm always doing things in the wrong order, usually at the wrong time. The opposite of normal. Do you ever feel that way? That the world is moving to a rhythm that you just can't seem to match?

Most of the time I count it off as just me being abnormally strange. But every morning when I look at this tree, I wonder if it really even matters. So what if it's losing it's leaves in the wrong season. It's still a beautiful tree doing it's thing right along with all the others.

And so I wonder if doing your own thing, no matter the season, really is what it's all about. Regardless of those around us. We're still our own beauty. Maybe more so because we're going against the grain. Weird is the new normal. At least I believe it is.

Let's learn a lesson from the leaf-falling tree. Be who you are. No matter what surrounds you. Now matter what the world tells you. Do your thing and be uniquely beautiful.

Words to remember.

Happy random Wednesday, friends.