Mommy Time

I'll admit I had some selfish motivation for signing the girls up for Awana. Sure the main reason I wanted them to participate was for them to learn more about Jesus Christ and strengthen their knowledge of Him. The secondary (selfish) reason was a little Mommy time. I figured that Jason would most likely stay home with Cooper on Awana nights since Cooper is too little to participate and he would normally be asleep before Awana even gets finished. That meant that on Wednesday nights, I could drop the girls off at 6:30 and I would be free until I needed to pick them up at 8pm.
I envisioned going to Starbucks, grabbing a table, and sitting there reading a book, knitting a scarf, writing a list, or doing anything else that I wanted. I thought about shopping in Montgomery Village and not having to listen to "Are we done yet?" or "Can I have this?". I was sure it was going to be 1.5 hours of bliss.
Then reality set in. Last week when I took the girls I realized I was nervous to leave them at Awana by themselves. I new in my head that they were fine. I knew they would have fun and be safe, but in my heart I was worried. What if Grace got scared and Mommy wasn't there to comfort her? Would they know to get Emma Jo? What if Emma Jo didn't know anyone in her group and she felt lost and alone?
I did leave them and headed out to Montgomery Village. After struggling with the number of cars going so fast on the winding roads in the pitch dark, I finally got to Montgomery Village and realized J. Jill was closing in 5 minutes. So much for that option. With the stores closing it made me realize how late it was at night (7pm!) which made me think I needed to get back to my girls. So I went to a Starbucks, got some coffee to go and headed back to Awanas. I parked where I could see all activity into and out of the gym. I turned on my light and enjoyed my coffee and book from the comfort of my car.

This week was much better. I was calm and collected as I drove the kids to Awana. Not as rushed and frantic as last week. I got them there on time and got everyone to their assigned groups. It felt great when one of the leaders greeted Grace by name, took her hand, and escorted her to their group. That reassured me that someone was looking out for her and taking care of her in my absence.
Then I headed to the nearest Starbucks. I got some coffee, secured a table and worked diligently on my Fantasy Football lineup, read my book, and started on Christmas wishlists. I did notice myself checking my watch every 5 minutes to see if it was time to go gather up my girls. Finally around 7:25 I headed back. I didn't want to be late. I reached the parking lot at 7:30. So, like last week, I parked close, turned on my light, listened to the radio as I worked on Grace's new scarf.