Jumanji and The Perfect Torte

Sunday was quite the day. We went to the Clackamas County Fair for most of the day and indulged in rides, checked out the livestock and "As-Seen-On-TV" merchandise, ate cotton candy, burgers, corn dogs, lemonade...and my new favorite...deep fried apple pie! Sigh. Only in America.... I truly felt like Templeton the Rat when we waddled away. We were heading home with our sugar-cranked kids, when we received an invite for an evening barbecue with Mel and Steve. After discussing logistics, we decided we should grill at our house. We hit the door and I tried to pick up a bit -- basically I kicked the pile of laundry growing outside of our laundry room inside and slammed the door on it, then threw the breakfast dishes in the dishwasher. Good enough! Outside the kids were wearing off their sugar high and gearing up for more fun with friends. The fact that they were as hyper as rabid chihuahuas didn't phase me. Mel and Steve have proven that they love us over the years, despite our less-than-perfect kids and tornado hit house.

Mel and Steve showed up and the kids took off outside. The day had been full already, but at this point the evening took on a life of its own. As Mel was chopping watermelon she slipped with her knife and about took off the end of her finger. Jumping back, she knocked the ten pound melon to the floor -- I have never seen a melon explode before. Wow. I was mesmerized by the pink goo and juice all over my already crunchy, disgusting floors. Ah yes...Mel's finger. After I drew my riveted attention away from the melon mayhem, I was able to help Mel piece her finger back together. With the finger bandaged and the kitchen put back together, we could now focus our attention on our warring children who were engaged in World War III in our backyard. Between the boys hollering at the girls, the girls stomping and sneering at the boys, and the dog running circles around everyone, it was a regular scene from Jumanji. About the only thing missing was the rhino running through the yard.

After dinner, all was fairly calm. There was an occasional scuffle between the kids and an outburst of verbal assaults, but relative to the earlier scene it was much more serene. I took the opportunity to ask Kasie to help me trim the rabbits' nails. I had no more started trimming nails when the boys and Julia ran around the corner. "Mr. and Mrs. Mayer are here!" they whooped. Sure enough, around the corner came the kids' principal and kindergarten teacher, and their granddaughter, Jenna. My delight gave way to panic...First, my kids looked like they had rolled in dirt (actually I think they had), second my mind raced for a minute: Had I or had I not taken a shower today? I couldn't remember, and doubtful at this point if it would matter anyway. After a day at the fair, splattering melon and bleeding fingers, and now with a fine covering of rabbit hair, I was about as far from clean as...well...my kids. So, the fact that the lovely, coiffed, Mrs. Mayer was picking her way across our lawn, gracefully avoiding Hurley pooh, carrying the most beautiful torte you have ever laid eyes upon, seemed just a bit surreal and quite disarming. I was painfully aware of the loud, chaotic scene around us. In addition to their poise and enviably tidy appearance, the Mayers were extraordinarily good sports and fit right in to our crazy night. It was almost as if they didn't notice or didn't care -- kinda like they loved us despite our less-than-perfect kids, their much-less-than-perfect mother, and our tornado hit house :) We were so touched that they would drive all the way to our home to drop in and bring us a gorgeous dessert. It was a most memorable night!

I am always amazed at how decisions we make often have far reaching implications -- ones that we don't anticipate at all when the original decision is made. When Marc and I were looking at schools for our kids years ago, we didn't know how much that choice would impact our lives in our current situation. We were looking for a sound Christian school with a strong academic program. What we got was a whole lot more. We comment all the time about how grateful we are for our school, the staff, the parents, and (of course) the kids! During this season of our lives, we have been so blessed by our school family. We have been amazed by how much the relationships we have at this school have encouraged us and helped us along the way. One more blessing we can count in a long list of God's gracious gifts. Thank you to all of our friends at our school for all you have done to serve us and encourage us --from loving our kids to the perfect torte!


With love and blessings....