Oh, No!!! My keys are locked inside the car!

If it has to happen, it has to happen to me.... and it has to happen on the day my husband is three hours away. LIFE Camp was over. I was so proud of myself for being independent and thankful to people for helping me take care of our three boys all week long. Everything was packed on Thursday morning, the day we left camp. The car was all loaded up and I was ready to start the car and then... ngeeeek-ngeeeek-ngeeeek-ngeeeek-ngeeeek! Uh.... try again.... ngeeeek-ngeeeek-ngeeeek-ngeeeek-ngeeeek! The car won't start!!! Urghh! I ran to the reception area to see if there was anyone who could help me jump my car. I've never done it before ! Thanks to two guys who helped!

As we wiped the sweat off our faces (it was very hot and humid!), as we breathed a sigh of relief, and as the two guys closed the hood, I also closed the trunk and side doors while the engine was running. And then... my eyes got big when I realized the car automatically locked all the doors, with the keys in the ignition, with the engine running, and me standing outside looking shocked and helpless. I called Ed and he said we would have to wait two and a half hours for him to get there. Jenni kept saying "Oh, no! Darlene! Oh, no! Darlene!"

Thankfully, several pastors were still on the campus. Pastor Roger McCarty tried to stick a hanger in the window. Pastor Soonthorn had his tool box with him so they tried to open the side windows. And yes, they did and it opened! A tiny Thai gal crawled into the back seat and unlocked the door for us.

Lesson learned: make extra keys and give Jenni a copy. Also, attach one under the car somewhere.

Kidding aside... as the guys were trying to get the windows to open and the ladies praying and cheering on the side, I was thinking... Wow! What a beautiful picture of these people working together. Just like how God expects us to work together... peacefully, harmoniously, brainstorming on what we can do next. We are a body of Christ, each part unique. Each one has a job. Each one working together towards the same goal.

Romans 12:4-5 says, "For as we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function, so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another."

Oh... thankfully, Baby Jayjay wasn't locked inside the car. That day was his first birthday too!

Happy Birthday to Me!

Today I'm officially in the "late 30's" bracket. Aaah! I'm old. I know, I know... you who are in the 40's and above are saying, "Wow! She's young!"

I have this mindset that on my birthday I deserve to be treated like a queen. I expect my family to treat me like one, just for today. I expect to get a chance to go out and do some self-pampering. I didn't get a chance to do that today. Not even a special meal (well... at least, not yet. That will come tomorrow). I told myself today that I don't like having a birthday on a Saturday. Saturday is ministry day for us so not much time for pampering. I was kind of disappointed.

I sat down at the bar in the kitchen waiting for Ed to bring dinner (We ordered out because I couldn't cook. Not because it's my birthday, but because I cut my thumb real bad today. That, itself is another story. Ha!) As I was saying, while waiting for the food, I sat down to finish my unfinished coffee (leftover from this morning... I rarely dump leftover coffee!) My three little boys were there too. Eleven-month-old Jayjay was clapping his hands... as happy and content as he can be. Four-year-old Boom-Boom was pretending he was fixing dinner for me - "chicken breast, rice, and broccolli," he said. Seven, almost-eight-year-old Jojo was putting dishes back into the cupboards and drawers. While he was doing that he said, "Mommy, I love you very much, all day today!"

Wow! That just made my day! My birthday couldn't get any better than that. I didn't need "Mommy Pampering Day" after all. My boys took care of that for me. Birthday presents don't always come in packages or special privileges. Sometimes they come in little hearts so pure and innocent!