Crazy, Even for Me

So, my week started with this random thing. I had noticed in several places a women's name, she is part of a homeschool group I am in, her daughter was a student in one of my husband's classes, her name sometimes showed up in the emails from a running club I always intended to join but never did ( but still got emails from, just in case)...finally I got an email from a classical homeschool thing I was interested in, and her name was on the sending e-mail. So, I randomly sent her an email saying, we have all these connections. We became facebook friends and realized we have another random connection- she used to mentor teen moms with the same program I just started mentoring with. She is good friends with the leader of this branch, when I told the leader I had just met this woman, she said, "didn't I tell you when I first met you that you reminded me of someone? Well that is who you reminded me of." So we met this morning, this the crazy part--we met at 5 a.m. to run 6 miles in the pitch dark. I haven't run more than 4.5 since my baby was born 4 months ago. And I finished it, running the whole way (no walk breaks) I think it is really neat when something like this happens and you realize how small the world is, and I can't help but think there is a reason for it all, that in God's purpose, this woman and I were meant to meet, even if it is just to help me realize that I am not that crazy because there is someone out there a whole lot like me!

Manic Monday

Mondays are crazy for every reason under the sun. But there has to be one, right? There has to be a day that starts the week, that changes how we were living in complete relaxing bliss to utter chaos. That is kind of how I look at Mondays. Sundays, we go to church and then watch football. I used to work on Sundays, but now I am home with my family. And it is complete bliss (that may be an overstatement) But it is nice.
And then all of a sudden out of nowhere comes Monday, I have to run, because if I don't run on Monday, I may not run all week. I will just keep telling myself, "I haven't run yet, why start now." So I go for my 4 mile run. Then I eat breakfast while nursing my two month old, try to get her down for an early morning nap to start homeschooling my 3rd grader and kindergartener while my two year old just throws things. That is not ALL he does, but it is what sticks out because I think it is so weird, why do you have to throw everything? Maybe it is because he is my only boy. Anyways, I try to keep him happy while working with my kindergartener on reading and my third grader on math, reading, spelling, etc. My third grader hates reading, and this is the first year I am starting to wonder if maybe she has some sort of reading disability, like dyslexia, so I am trying new reading exercises with her. And all I want is for them to be brave, wise, humble, intelligent members of society with a little bit of a sense of humor when they grow up, and that is what I am shooting for. But usually I settle for "made it through" members of society. The kind that just get by, because that is all I see. I dont want them to be just "made it through" but sometimes in the middle, maybe I can't really see the whole picture. And then today, BREAKTHROUGH and it even happened on a Monday. My third grader insisted on reading the entire first chapter of Genesis. And she did it beautifully. So I guess I am ready for Tuesday... well after visit with friends, gymnastics, meeting and planning for the rest of the week.