Smooth Ride

So, the big news of the weekend is that on Saturday morning, we finally got our NEW CAR!!! It's a Toyota Sienna, with so many technological capabilities that by the time I learn how to use everything, we will be on to a new car.

You know, I get harrassed a lot for being an micro-manager super planner. But let me give you an example of what happens when you don't overplan. You buy a new car, pick it up at the dealership, and your kids are so stoked to ride in it for the first time. But you don't have car seats for it and the old car seats are so impossible to get into and out of the old car, so you don't dare try to move them. In fact, since your kids have both almost outgrown their current car seats, you don't even know which type of car seat you need and which models out there are worth their salt. So, you go to Target and buy two car seats. Any two. Then you send your husband to Barnes & Noble (which, by the way, your son calls Barnesinople because he learned about Constantinople somewhere along the line and gets the two confused) to read Baby Bargains and find out if your car seats pass the test. He finds out that in fact both of the seats you picked were given a D grade. So, he calls to tell you that he needs to return the two car seats to Target and that he has found the model of the seats that he wants to get. So you get on Amazon.com to try and find that particular seat, assuming that Target isn't going to have it in stock. You can't seem to figure out how to get your free two-day Prime shipping, so you pay $30 for shipping. When your husband gets home, he confirms that Target doesn't have the car seat you want, so you click the "Buy" button, shipping charge and all. No sooner have you bought the seats (which now say that they may not arrive until August 2!!), your husband says, "Maybe we should check somewhere else around here before we order them." But of course, the ordering has been done. So you call Toys R Us. Yes, of course they have the car seats that you need in stock. 14 of them in fact. So, you tool around on the computer until you figure out how to cancel the Amazon order and you send your husband to Toy R Us to get the good car seats. And he spends all of nap time trying to get them ready for installation so that when the baby wakes up the kids can finally drive in the new car on the way to an art fair about an hour away. THAT'S what happens when you don't uber plan ;)

But let me tell you, the trip to the art fair was HEAVENLY! I cannot remember the last time I have felt so peaceful in the car. The boys were engrossed in their Little Einsteins video on the double-wide drop down movie screen that's in the car. The hum of the minivan over the highway just about lulled me to sleep (Brian was driving, thank goodness). And Brian and I actually got to hold a conversation. In the car. Just the two of us. Heavenly.

See the attached pictures here. The boys in the poorly-planned out car seats in their brand new minivan! David couldn't even look away from the movie screen for one second to take a picture. Michael, as you can see, did look at me for a split second, but this was all I got when I asked for a smile. I think he was annoyed that I was interrupting the show ;)

So, today's Sunday. David seems to be pretty much over a fever he has had for the past 3 days. Michael is on a week-long stretch of sleeping into the 6 o'clock hour. Knock on wood. Seriously, knock on wood. And Brian is golfing (with his boss) for the first time in ages. Life is good.

I went to church alone this morning. Brian and I have agreed that while we are deciding which of the 5-6 Catholic churches to adopt as our new parish, we should divide and conquer. I went at 9 am senza kids. He went at 11 am senza kids. That way, we could both listen to the homily. I'm not sure if it was because this was the first mass that I could focus on in the past 3 3/4 years, or if it was because of news from my hometown that the 3 year old child of one of my high school classmates, and the grandchild of my 3rd grade teacher died this past week of leukemia, but I cried through most of the mass. I felt like a weeping fool! It reminded me of all the crying that I did after I had David. What did it take to make me cry those first few weeks of parenthood? Any human touch. Any commercial on TV. Any song's lyrics. (Here was one of the church songs today that made me weepy: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jfxf4YMYd1k) But both after David was born and today, I wasn't particularly sad. In fact, I would say that in both instances, gratitude was my prime feeling. I was crying and crying. But I wasn't sad. I was happy ;)