Life Lesson and Menu Plan Monday

Last week was a rough one.

Rob was gone for five days, which left a lot of juggling

of kids' schedules and activities.

I've felt like I have had a low-level illness just below the surface,

culminating in cold sores and swollen glands but no discernible cause,

just a general feeling of malaise!

And one more word: STINKBUGS!

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Yesterday at Chris's baseball game,

I felt like I took one of those brief trips through time.

You know the kind, when phases of your kid's life

flash through your mind in chronological order.

Chris is playing at the Majors now and the field is large.

Finally, he is in the type of field where he can smack the ball

almost to the fences and still only get to first base or maybe second.

It is a whole new world.

I left the field to get him food from the snack bar

and as I walked, I passed one of the smaller fields.

This is where he has been playing the last few years,

where he learned to pitch and where he got hit by many other kids learning to pitch!

Then I walked past one of the teeny-tiny fields and I was overcome with the memory

of a white blonde little sprite.

I could remember seeing that tiny body at the plate, clutching his bat.

I stood for a moment and watched.

A coach gently lobbed an underhand ball to a tiny boy standing at the plate,

wielding a bat nearly as long as his torso.

The boy swung wildly and missed.

In the field, some small boys were running in circles in the dirt,

totally unaware of any activity happening in the game.

Others were actively digging in the dirt with their shoes,

some had abandoned their positions all together

and one was wearing a glove on his face!

I chuckled to myself as I walked on,

the voices of the parents calling to their children to

PAY ATTENTION!

GET THAT GLOVE OFF YOUR FACE!

I guess that is a lesson I need to learn:

what seems so important, so essential at any given time

is just a step on a very long road of development..

and to allow some fun and laughter along the way.

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We did really well following the menu plan last week,

which is especially awesome given that Rob was gone.

Hopefully this week will go as smoothly.

Monday: Teriyaki chicken, rice, broccoli

Tuesday: Spaghetti with Turkey meatballs and tomato veggie sauce

Wednesday: Grilled cheese and homemade tomato soup

Thursday: Leftovers smorgasboard

Friday through Sunday:

Leeann out of town (GIRLS WEEKEND WHOOOOOOT!!)

Rob to do burgers one night, Dad's choice one night.