Family Missions

Have you ever had a really busy day that actually felt like two days all in one? That was my Saturday (when I started this post...I will adjust accordingly)

Saturday started off our spring break with me setting the alarm. I was invited to a "spring break mission" to help Ms. Bonnie with some much needed household activities like painting, organizing, etc.

I was happy to go, but I will admit, it wasn't all charitable. That morning when that alarm went off much earlier than I wanted to, I stated wondering, "Why am I going?" Throw in a sore foot, my own home that needs a little...a LOT...attention, feeling a bit insecure around new people (which many are/were), and giving up a family day at home...well, it was tempting to just stay at home. But a promise is a promise.

Last night when I mentioned where I was going today, child 2 started her persuasive talk, "Can you just take me, Momma?" In the end, I let her come.

Sidenote: We very much hope to do family missions at some point. Our church does have several missions opportunities. Right now though, with a two year old (and even the five year old), a mission trip would require more attention on my own kids than on who I was trying to minister to. They require constant supervision that would just not be easy to deal with in a new setting with new people...not much would happen for me meeting anyone else's needs. I did consider taking the two bigger kids on a mission trip to Mexico last summer, then that whole border crime wave started, and that was off...

Anyway, the mission project invitation has said kids were invited. So I decided to take child 2, thinking she would be able to help out with the younger kids. Unfortunately, unbeknownst to me, the decision was later made to probably not have kids come due to weather (It was cold and by the time we left, sleeting and snowing). But I didn't know that. Oops!

So early in the morning, we threw on our jeans and t-shirts and headed down the road. Somehow we managed to arrive first which was not our goal. But the bonus was that I got to finish feeding a little baby (Baby Thomas) before he left for the day. :)

Soon after that, we ended up with a full house of people ready to work. There was a whole lot of taping, painting, cleaning, organizing, etc. going on. Even I did a little painting (which my husband quickly said, "I can't get you to paint around here...").

It was a good day of work. (It was also probably the straw that broke, or at least felt like it did, my already injured foot...) It always feels good to be able to help others and to be around others who are helping others. There was some fun, including some "oldies" playing in the background, some good food, and maybe even some calories burned in the process.

But my favorite part of the day? Being with my daughter. I didn't see her the whole time. She did several tasks, while I worked in other areas. And I am sure a few people wondered why she was there. (She is quite a talker and very persistent...not afraid at all to share what she wants to do) But I am thankful for a daughter with such a generous heart. She could have stayed at home and played away for the day. But she chose to help someone else and did it with gusto. I love that she isn't afraid to try new things, she isn't afraid to roll up her sleeves and get dirty doing honest work, and she does it all with a smile on her face. I am so honored to be her momma.

Reba