yesterday...

The life of a mom is full of awkward moments and bad timing...

I could go through my routine just perfectly; feed the baby, burp the baby, tuck her in all cozy in her swing, which I know she loves, go set the table, everyone's happy as clams, and just as I'm sitting down, or right when the fork is brought to my lips, "waaaaaaaahhhhhhh waaahhhhhhh wahhahahahahhhhhhhhh...."

Or how she pees right before I get the next diaper under her...

Or spits up just before I get the burp rag...

One Sunday at church, we decided to let Adora stay with us for the service... she was doing so good, sitting quietly, and apparently even paying attention, cuz as soon as she noticed that one word in the pastors sermon that she's not allowed to say but had recently become obsessed with, she shouts it right back to him...
Not a second after he said no she's proudly displaying her free will to say "NO!!!!" And not too quietly either... Luckily no one was offended...
One of the times that daddy explained to her that she's not allowed to say it, she decided that "ooooohhhhh noooooo" was the proper response...

Right as I'm getting up to the check out stand when I'm grocery shopping is another favorite time of Chloe''s for her to wake up and start screaming at the top of her lungs, and literally spit out the pacifier if I offer it.. or just scream right around it if I hold it there...

Yesterday, as I was waiting to be picked up from the courthouse, I just start nursing Chloe' and all under a 2 minute time frame, my mom, who I'd been trying to reach all day, finally calls back, Ed calls and says they'll be outside in 5 seconds and he expected me to be there as well. I knew if I pulled Chloe' off at that moment she'd only freak out in hysteria until she got her milkies again, plus, I reminded Ed, he had to come in with the money to pay the court...
So he comes in, and I'm standing and nursing Chloe' and he brought Adora in too who wanted me to pick her up, and I had to got to the counter to pay, and just as I get there and the lady starts talking, the phone rings again!!!
ahhh!!!!
and people get the funny notion to leave messages saying, "why do you have a cell phone if you never answer it?"
like the whole reason anyone has one is to have no life outside of answering it every time it rings
Anyway...
In case anyone wanted to know how it all went I'll tell the whole story...
I was so nervous all morning... We left sac-town around 5:30... they say to come early cause of limited seating, and come to find, though the doors don't open till 8am, the line started forming at 7... we got there about 7:20 :) and I was one of the first 10 in line, which quickly lengthened, to maybe 60 or so by the time they let us all in... They only let the first 50 people in to the 9:30 court room, and the next 50 to the 2pm one and the rest have to come back another day...

I had to feed Chloe' once when I first got there, outside in the cold... I didn't mind at all, though people stared... I figure they just need to get over it if they have a problem...
I didn't mind at all...we were both a lot warmer, and I was sad to put her back in the car seat...
Then I fed her once again while waiting outside the actual courtroom across the street, and when they started letting people in, they told me I had to wait out in the hall and the lady would come get me when the judge called me up... I assumed they just didn't even want the possibility of an interuption
I thought for sure it would be right when she woke up again that they'd come out to tell me the judge was ready to see me...or else I would picture going up before the judge and he'd ask "how do you plead" and right as I open my mouth she'd wail...
But that didn't happen, she was a perfect little angel and slept the whole time... hallelujah!!!
So I go up before the judge, and he says
"you received a citation for improper use of the diamond lane, how do you plead?"

"um.. guilty I guess..the signs weren't very clear..."
(I had prayed right before going up, because I didn't want to come across too demanding,and I didn't want to lie, I just hoped for whatever grace possible, and wanted to have the right heart about it... And we really couldn't afford another set back like this, being so far behind as we are... The courtesy notice said the fine was $390.00)

"the fine is $186.00, you have 30 days to pay it..,

at first I was relieved, it being less than I thought... but I still dared for more... I had asked God to put the words in my mouth, afraid if I spoke on my own I'd totally blow it... Before I even thought I heard myself say "I was wondering if I could maybe do community service or something, I'm really poor and just had a baby, and I don't know that I could ever pay this"

"alright, 18 hrs community service, have a seat, and see the clerk when she calls you"

I sat down astonished... I totally wasn't going to ask for community service, I didn't think it the best option at all, given the fact that I had an almost 2 month old baby... but when he said it, it felt like it was from God...

So the clerk gave me some paperwork to bring to the community service people across the street, and I went to see them...
The lady was really nice, but her news wasn't very good...
The fee for community service was $20.00-no biggie, but if I wanted it transferred to Sacramento, instead of there in Oakland, it would be another $80.00... and I only had 2 months to complete it, so I don't know how I'd do it in Oakland, plus with gas and everything, we'd be looking at near the same price as the fine either way...
I was discouraged, to say the least...
I was considering going back to talk to the judge, thinking if he fully heard me out he might still drop the whole thing, or put me on a form of probation or something, I don't know...
I go back across the street and back upstairs. The lady said I would have to wait till the end of the court hearing, and there was still at least 30 people left... I was willing, till it occurred to me that maybe I hadn't fully covered all my options with the community service deal.. It really had felt from God, and I didn't want to overstep my bounds with the judge, or annoy him, or appear as someone just looking for a free ride.... I really was mostly concerned with the little one, ad us being so broke, and yes, truthfully the sense that our judicial system can be a bit unfair the way it squeezes money out of people for the littlest things..
anyway, I went back to the comm. ser. people, project 22 is what it's call, I spoke with a different lady, and she was just as nice, yet slightly more empathetic with my situation.... I had asked if there was a way I could start the service right away, since my husband would be in the city next week anyway, she doubted it, and given the fact that I have 2 kids, and no childcare options, especially with the youngest being breastfed, she seemed genuinely concerned...
she asked me if I belonged to a church...
I told her yes...
there is a church here, that's actually only a few blocks away, that we have felt more than welcomed by, and were seriously considering joining officially...
she said "the reason I ask, is the fee in Sacramento is only for them referring you to an agency registered with us, we are however willing to work with churches not registered with us, in which case it wouldn't matter what county you were in, as long as the hours were completed time"

again I was astonished... It all seemed so perfect... Ed is always wanting me to volunteer somehow, and be more involved in the community and build relationships... Granted this may seem like a one sided deal, but I really was seeing it as not only a huge gift from God as a way out of paying the fine, but a wonderful opportunity to get me involved somehow... get my foot in the door so to say, and really bless them as a fellowship, as well as build relationships with the church we are growing to love...
"is it really that easy?" I was asking

"oh yeah, all you need to do is....." minor details I don't need to kill my hands typing... But it really is so easy I can hardly believe it... And I can't wait to talk to them about it...

it almost feels like cheating, I don't know why, but none the less I felt I was walking in open heavens all day long after that...