Amazing Grace!

Today, I am celebrating my oldest daughter. There is no specific reason why I’m doing this today, except that I just find her absolutely fabulous! I often look at her with complete awe and amazement-she makes me want to be a better person! There are so many special things about my oldest daughter, she nurturing, funny, charming, smart, kind-hearted and often acts more like a 40 year-old girlfriend than like my 18 year-old daughter. The following text exchange from a couple of weeks ago is the perfect illustration:

Oldest Daughter: Sorry about being grumpy this morning.

Me: That’s okay, thank you. Andrew is welcomed to come to dinner tonight, I don’t know what we’re having though. Maybe Cap’n Crunch Chicken Nuggets. (Actually, I am a terrible texter-so it really said “I don’t know what we are having. Maybecpancrunch chickennuggrts“)
OD: If you have time to make it, that sounds delicious. I don’t want you to be stressed out though. I think we are all still recovering from this weekend.

Me: Are you a 40 year old trapped in an 18 year old’s body? (real text-Ar you a 40 year old tra00ed in 18 year oldks boody?)

OD: Probably! Ha ha!

*I feel pretty confident that the ‘Ha ha” was for the comment, not for the bad texting skills!

And not long ago she said, “You’re probably tired of doing all the Mom stuff today, why don’t you go relax and I will take care of dinner.”

Truly, she’s a remarkable girl. I feel very blessed to have her for my daughter. Recently, oldest daughter was so moved by the film A Walk to Beautiful that she decided to try to raise $10,000 to help women in developing countries get corrective surgery for childbirth injuries (obstetric fistula). A Walk to Beautiful is an award winning documentary that tells the story of 5 Ethiopian women who suffer from obstetric fistula and their harrowing ordeal. These women were ostracized by their husband, family and community. They each decided to travel to the Addis Ababa Fistula Hospital in order to seek treatment. If you have an opportunity, I would highly recommend watching it, it is life-changing!

I love that my sweet daughter has a heart for those around her and that she cares so much for the global community. I also love that she sets big goals. It really fills my heart!

She will be going to college next fall and we will all miss her terribly, but it will be so exciting to watch all amazing things she will do!

If you would like to help oldest daughter reach her goal and help women across the globe, please go to  http://www.gofundme.com/etp2g

Discombobulation

I can't believe it has been over a month since I posted. Suddenly, time seems to be playing tricks on me. Things that happened a year ago, seem like just a few months ago, the details of the situation clear and fresh, yet I can't recall what I had for dinner last night-oh yeah, I remember now, I forgot to have dinner last night!

Lately, my world seems off-kilter, nothing specific has happened and I can't pinpoint what is off, but it seems like my entire world has been moved 1/2 inch to the left. It is absolutely discombobulating!

Several years ago (or was it several months ago?) there was a "Mad About You" episode where Jamie Buchman (Helen Hunt) and her sister Lisa Stemple (Anne Ramsay) accidentally switched handbags. The always organized Jamie was suddenly disheveled, out of sorts, an all-around mess, while perpetually disorganized Lisa suddenly had it all together. I feel like Jamie; as if someone switched handbags with me.

It is a slippery slope when things begin to veer off course. I am usually pretty laid-back and try to roll with things as much as I can, but I'm looking around my house, that is filled with souvenir items for a show youngest son is in right now (The Music Man) and notice the clean clothes that need put away, the clean dishes in the dishwasher, and the 465 pairs of shoes that need returned to various closets throughout the house. And I must admit, it feels totally overwhelming! Too overwhelming to even deal with.

This weekend is the final weekend of the show, after which the fabulous items and all their fixin's will be gone and I will be able to reclaim my home. I hope that helps and inspires me to deal with all the other stuff. I also hope that once I get everything back to "normal" my world will move back 1/2 inch to the right and someone will return my handbag!