It’s already Thursday, so apparently I’m still trying to wake up.

I could mention that, during church on Sunday, the sleepy bug evidently crawled up my leg and bit me on the rear and that I suddenly, for a relatively brief period of time, felt very warm and drowsy and that I had a bit of trouble staying alert.

I could mention that it was most certainly the bug and not the message. I can assure you of that, as we’ve been studying Proverbs, and it is really good stuff.

I could mention all that, but it wouldn’t really matter. All that really seems to matter right now is that I am embarrassed.

Shall I explain? Of course, I shall!

Between services, our pastor and I exchanged general pleasantries. The conversation went something like this. (Okay, it went exactly like this.)

Me: Good morning!
(Insert my smile here… you can imagine what it looked like.)

Pastor: Hey now,… I didn’t mean to put you to sleep in there!
(Insert his smile here… you can imagine what it looked like.)

(Now insert the dropping of my jaw and the widening of my eyes—which, by the way, were now quite awake.)

I could have said, “Oh no no nooo! It wasn’t you but my boy waking up at 3am this morning!” or “Oh no no nooo! It was the Benadryl. It always knocks me out!”

I could mention that I said those snappy things… But I can’t since in my apparent sleepy-shock, all brain functions shut down.

Completely.

Instead, I said nothing. In fact, I responded with something so much more profound...

I groaned out a guttural “nnnuuuhhhhhhh” that likely sounded just as dumb as I must’ve looked during my observed rest.

To my credit, I don’t think I ever totally fell asleep. Granted, I may have listened some with my eyes closed. And my head may have bobbled a couple times. But I didn’t get whiplash. And I didn’t drool. And I didn’t snore.

And if such humiliation was to befall me again, I absolutely would not mention it to my husband at the start of the second service. Else I might be trying to tame the giggle bug that bites when such awkward things are spoken aloud. And that, too, is also quite embarrassing.

Hmmm. Maybe this Sunday I'll wear sunglasses.

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My kids love to play house. Usually the older girls want to be the babies, so Blessing #3 is the daddy and B#4 is the mommy. I think it’s sweet to watch them and to listen to them play.

And I suppose that often they’re like little mirrors to how the Monkey Moma and Monkey Daddy are...

B#3: Honey! Honey!

B#4: Hoonneeeyyy! Honeeyy!

I also think it's fun and fascinating to see how their little minds work... the very logical conclusions they come to after thinking long and hard about the things they really wonder about. (Of course sometimes many times that logical thinking leads to some very illogical behavior... but we'll save that for another post!)

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While we were on vacation, one evening B#3 walks into the room where I was sitting and reading a book. He looks at me, as he deeply ponders something obviously very serious.

B#3: Mom, it’s okay to marry someone your own family. Did you know that, Moma?

MM: Oh really? How’s that?

B#3: Well ‘cuz it’s all right. Muggins and Gumpa (Grandma and Grandpa) are married and they’re in the same family. And you and Daddy are married, and you’re in the same family...

...So, see? See, Moma? That’s how I know it’s okay to do that. Don’t you know that, Moma? It’s okay to marry someone in your own family!

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If you want to shuffle through the pictures faster,

just click on the arrows at the top of the Slide box

to advance in either direction.

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While on our vacation, we made a trip to the sprinkler park
with Pinky and the cousins. The kids had a blast!
And making it even that much better? It was free!

Good find, Pinky-- we'll definitely be going again next summer!!

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It was a looong drive, so there was plenty of sightseeing to do... through the windows while coasting down the highway. As it was usually far too windy to roll down the windows and far too much time on the road to actually stop the car, I just took pictures from my seat through the windows while we were driving. But when I was trying to get a picture of one of the many HUGE sunflower farms, I shouldn't have done it through the window... you can see kid & dog finger/mouth/nose-smooshed-up-against-the-window muck in that one!

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There's the start of the trip...

...and then there's the drive home:






Hmmm... I might could use that jail in my backyard. :)

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and hello to you, too!

I took this video on our vacation. Is this guy a grouch or is he just showing off for my camera? Not sure on the quality of the uploaded video, but on mine you can actually see spit and spray coming out of his mouth everything time he heaves and roars. He definitely puts a lot of effort into that growl!

No, no, no. We were not on an exotic African safari.:) More pictures of the trip to the zoo are coming soon... and pictures of all the other vacation excitement, too!

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