A Day of Surprises

The past 24 hours have been full of very random, unexpected occurrences. 

Yesterday, I was quite agitated to discover that the only volunteer in the church nursery was a woman who was not physically capable of getting on the floor or picking up babies.  This meant I had to stay in the nursery with my four kids (who were the ONLY kids in the nursery) the entire service.  I missed the Christmas cantata so I could watch my own kids. 

The next random discovery was how easy and delicious these no-bake lactation cookies are.  I'd been looking for an alternative to the standard chocolate chip oatmeal lactation cookies, and was pleasantly surprised to find this recipe.  I won't tell you how many I ate today, but if they work, I should become part cow.

I was able to bake, clean, and get all four kids dressed, fed, and at the library for weekly storytime  by 10:30.  Once we arrived, I was certainly not expecting to see a notice on the door stating, "Storytime is cancelled for the month of December.  It will resume January 6."  Oh well.  We had fun putting on a puppet show, playing with the magnetic letters, and reading about firemen.

The next surprise was the sunny, 60° weather.  (I guess this wouldn't have been a surprise had I checked the weather report, but seriously, it's mid-December.)  We took advantage of the gorgeous weather by spending the afternoon outside at our favorite park.  Jackson sprinted across the fields.

I think today was the first time Jack discovered his shadow.  I was highly amused watching him lift his right hand, then his left, all the while staring at his shadow.  He kept saying, "Look, Mommy!  I make it move!"

Amelia ended up falling asleep on James, while Maddie napped in the Ergo.  All three were asleep by the time we walked to the lake.

 James awoke especially happy!  This kid has the most contagious laugh.

The most unusual surprise by far was being stopped at the park by a local news anchor.  Of all things, she asked if she could interview me about soap!  The interview was about the safety of antibacterial soaps and whether or not I would continue to use it despite concerns from the FDA.  I ended up informally talking to the woman for nearly 20 minutes about a variety of topics, mostly pertaining to the kids.  They must be desperate for stories since we made the 5:30 news.

Another surprise was seeing how ridiculously large a Whopper is from Burger King.  I had a "buy one, get one free" coupon that was going to expire within a week.  I'm not a huge Burger King fan and I've never ordered a Whopper.  It was literally the size of Jackson's head!

The best surprise of the day was being able to donate some of my frozen milk to a local mom in need.  Even though I'm having to supplement, I still have a respectable freezer stash.  In an international Facebook group of over 1,000 women who exclusively pump, I just so happened to read a post from a local mom who was having a temporary medical emergency.  She needed 30 oz of milk for her infant who has a feeding tube and doesn't tolerate full formula feeds.  I met her at a church halfway between our homes and was able to deliver my milk.  I feel honored and blessed to be able to share with her.

If the rest of the week follows suit, we're in for an eventful week.