Misadventures and Shared Moments

Despite a series of misadventures, we made it to
Oklahoma to see my sister and parents. We arrived minus one important purple suitcase, but that wasn't the airline's fault. It was mine! I seemed to be a magnet for mishaps on this trip. My eldest daughter, on the other hand, was a generator of creative solutions.

Her solution to the missing case of kids' clothes started with a question-- "Do they have a second hour?"
By that she meant Sunday school. Her proposal was that her younger sister wear the skirt we had with us and attend the first hour. Then my eldest would swap clothes with her and wear the skirt for the second session. Meanwhile, her grandma and grandpa came up with another solution: a last-minute Saturday night shopping spree. My idealistic, cost-free idea to find clothes to borrow did not happen, but we did appreciate having our needs met. On Sunday morning, however, the girls chose two wear two "vintage" dresses that had belonged to me as a girl.

Solution Gal's next idea was a contingency plan, in case our minivan broke down (which it thankful did not). If we had to abandon the vehicle and walk the rest of the way to grandma's, her little brother could be pulled in the wheeled suitcase--the black one I did manage to put in the trunk.

Fog and sickness also assailed us on our trip, but we enjoyed the 60 degree weather and fine views of grass further south. And there was still some of Mom's fruitcake left!

Besides marveling at my daughter's ingenuity, I also was amazed by God's goodness in providing a job to my younger sister. I had not seen her since the summer and it was important to reconnect in person. Furthermore, my children got to spend time with their grandparents, creating a paper bouquet for them to keep during the quieter months ahead.
On the way back home, we broke our journey in Kansas, where Jhona lives. After meeting over Company Girl coffee several months ago, I enjoyed getting to know her and her kids as three-dimensional people. We appreciated how she welcomed us so warmly.

Now it's back to real life. I am hoping to be less forgetful in the coming weeks as we settle back into a routine!