Friday, October 10, 2008

test #1.

"come what may" certainly came in full abundance today.

did i love it? mmm.... not so sure. let me elaborate.
confused? click here for an explanation of "come what may."

well, remember how i love the month october? one of the main reasons is my birthday. i'm turning 23 on sunday... yet still can't get rid of that "little girl excitement" that has been festering inside of me since i changed the calendar from september to october. seriously. another reason i love my birthday month is because i share it with my mom and my sister-in-law. so every year, we all get together and go out to dinner to celebrate- and we exchange gifts (LOVE THAT). well, tonight was that special night where we were celebrating the three of us. the restaurant of choice: the cheesecake factory. was i excited? uh-hem, do i really need to answer that? pretty obvious that i'd been daydreaming about it all week.

so, i left work 5 minutes after the bell rang (thinking, cheesecake, cheesecake, cheesecake!) and got home. ellie was due for a nap. "ok," i thought. "we can do this." i had a lot to get done; wrapping last minute gifts, getting diaper bag ready, of course pumping, and a lot of other stuff that seemed important then but i can't remember now.

well, of course since we were in a hurry, ellie decided to take a long nap. when she woke up, i felt panicked and rushed. we had to leave right THEN. ellie's happy awake time is precious. but everything wasn't ready. i was a mess. the house was a mess. i started crying. "we're so late!" i yelled at M. he started running around like a chicken with his head cut off- anything to stop the tears. but in my mind, i just kept getting madder and sadder as i thought of being late to my very own birthday party (irrational? maybe. but cut me some slack: i hang out with 5 year olds all day, remember?).

finally we were off.

traffic.

great.

oh well, we were on our way. tears finally stopped. i felt my rational self coming-to. and then,

crreeeeaaakkccchhsurrrsgjlj;akl;asghhh.

WHAT was THAT?

and before we knew it, we were slowly coasting to a stop on the right shoulder of i-15...somewhere in pleasant grove.

wonderful.

"what's wrong?" i asked M (trying to sound nicer than the last time i had yapped at him at the house).

"the car stopped working."

{seriously.}

silence.

more silence.

even more silence.

neither of us knew what to do.

and so, M did what he does when he doesn't know what to do: he called his dad. i did what i do when i don't know what to do: i called my mom.

an hour later, our next door neighbors came to our rescue...and we left the dead swan (our '01 corolla). no cheesecake. no presents. no car. hmmf.

there was a moment when we were sitting there...cars rushing by...the sun setting in the distance...and Elder Wirthlin's talk came to mind. "come what may, and love it." i was kind of mad when i first thought of it. "this doesn't count," i thought. "no one loves this." but, just minutes later, i held ellie in my arms...and she gave me the longest snuggle she'd ever given me. just laid on my shoulder, suckin' on her thumb, watchin' the cars jet by. "ok," i thought. "i do love this."

{snuggle on my shoulder}

so, the swan was towed...and the bad news came: we have to replace her engine. or ditch the swan for a new ride. neither ideal scenarios for a half-time kinder teacher and a full-time accounting student. real life bites, doesn't it? ugh! my first come what may test is a little more than i had bargained for....but i keep thinking back to that sweet snuggle on my shoulder...and i know "everything will work out." will i love it all the while? i'm sure when i can laugh about this in a couple of days...or weeks...or months, i will love it more than i do now.

{sad, stranded family}

p.s. i'd like to thank travis and becca for saving our sad, stranded family (see pic above) on your friday night. you pretty much saved our lives. i'd also like to thank my brother and sister-in-law who did deliver us some cheesecake factory goodness and some birthday surprises. thanks for going out of your way to share some of your party with us! and mom, dad & mimi, thank you for all of the gifts! you are wonderful- i'm sad we missed you tonight.
p.s.s. i just realized that i left my phone in our desolate swan...so if you've been trying to contact me...well, i won't be getting back to you for a while. hmmf.

14 comments:

ClaysJenna said...

This almost made me cry...dang hormones:) Im glad that your car dies on I15 and you guys are able to safely get to the side of the road!! Oh...and great minds think alike...Cheesecake Factory is where Clay took me for my October birthday this year!! October really is a great month!

Hilary said...

Sad...You story made me so SAD. Real life is SO hard. Josh and I are totally feeling it now more than ever. You'll be able to make it. Keep your head up. Love you! Have a happy, happy birthday!

Unknown said...

That is the pits. Thank goodness for your little angel to cheer you up. I love you! Can't wait to see you soon! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!

Reena Bostock said...

Marce,
I laughed and cryed with this post. I totally do the same frantic stressing when I have to be somewhere and the kids aren't cooperating and the husband has some dumb look on his face like I'm going to shoot him if he does or says the wrong thing. All in all everything always works out and we laugh about it later. I'm sorry that your car is gone, but I'm thankful you have friends and family around to help you in your time of need. Take care.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

jaci said...

oh, marce. thanks for sharing your story. i want to be more like you. i would have been a wreck in that moment.

happy birthday, tomorrow!

Becca said...

I love you guys! You really do have such a positive attitude for life and it is such a joy being around you. I swear I never stop smiling the moment I walk into your apartment until I leave it. It was such an adorable moment when Travis and I walked up to your car and I saw you holding
Ellie in the back seat. So cute. Anyway, happy happy b-day tomorrow!

Linda said...

My Darling M& M's and E! You passed the test! You get and A+ on the " Come what may and love it chapter this day. With a little perspective, you were able to see that you are " rich" in the things that matter. You are doing great. If your DAD would have tried to take a picture of me stranded and sad and disappointed I would have thrown the camera or phone out to the middle of the freeway... I love you so much and I am just grateful that you made it OK. Thank YOU to the angels that rescued you... ( President Holland!) Give yourselves HUG, Hug... and a kiss..a. Amores,
MOM

bartonbeat said...

i wish we would've been in town, and i hope you would've called us if we were. if you need a ride to anything in the transitioning time... please let me know! that is such a bummer that you missed your special night, even more of a bummer that you have to replace the car.
you will be blessed for your ability to see the good in things. that is the true test in this life. i hope your birthday replaces the "debby downer" of last night. hope to see you soon and give you lots of birthday goodness.

Cathryn and Alex said...

I am so sorry! I loved hearing about that story though-it was hilarious in a very sad way-I think the sad pictures totally topped it off. You guys look so cute together and little Ellie seems like the cherry on top. Hope you guys are doing well!

Candace said...

Oh the Swan! Jared and I have the Jettstar, a '99 Jetta who spends more days in the shop than carting us around town. I totally understand the feeling.

What a crappy day! I'm glad you're okay and found time to laugh about it. Little Ellie is a sweatheart.

Oh, and Happy 23rd Birthday! Party on.

erin said...

oh, that is such a sad story. I'm sorry. I hope you have a great birthday though. Way to incorporate that talk. You're better than me. I would have pitched a fit. :)

davis said...

what a bummer lady! i hope you had a good birthday... happy belated! you do have quite the beautiful babe and she makes everything worth it for sure. love you.

{amy k.} said...

Oh Marce- I'm so sorry! That is no fun at all! But look at you, posing for a picture at such a bummer of a time! You've always been a good example of seeing the best in life- and thank goodness the car just stopped safely and not crunching with another car, I couldn't even imagine! I can picture the frantic "leaving the house" because that happens to me too- and I don't even have any little ones to crate along with me! You made me laugh when you said " (irrational? maybe. but cut me some slack: i hang out with 5 year olds all day, remember?)." I'm so glad your little family is safe and well...and sorry to hear about your car. (sorry for such a long comment!!) love you. xoxo

Amber Jenks said...

Hey Marce,
I don't actually know you but when I get bored I read the blogs of the people who are friends with people I know (maybe that is kind of crazy, but I enjoy reading about people.) Anyway.. I always love to read your adventures. I'm sorry that you had an awful day but I'm glad that it got better. Its great to read how positive you are and to know that I am not the only one with these random, sometimes hard to deal with, happenings of life.
Anyway.. I wanted to ask you where you found your carseat. It is absolutely stinking adorable! I'm not pregnant, but me and my husband are trying so I can't help but look for these things because I so can't wait to get to be a mom.
Well.. thanks for sharing your life adventures. You always seem to have such a positive outlook even with the crazy things that occur. Hope you had a happy birthday!
- Amber