First thing’s first – if you haven’t weighed in on my response post to Lisa’s take on the Healthy Living Summit, you should. Both are sparking GREAT discussions and I would love to hear your take!!!

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Today started out as one of those days. I accidentally hit the off button instead of the snooze button on the alarm and overslept by an hour. That meant I started the day in a tizzy rushing around like a mad woman. That rushing ended in a bowl of Braedon’s oatmeal and apple sauce mixture flying through the air and landing with a big kersplat in the middle of the floor I actually took the time to mop well this week. All with the lovely tune of a hungry little boy banging and moaning in the background.

Yea. One of those days. Good thing one of those days can quickly turn around! Just as I was about to let a stream of not nice words run through my head, I heard a chime from my phone. The chime that brings me back to sanity more times than I care to admit…

Yes. I have daily reminders go off every two hours from 8 am to 10 pm for PRAYER. I hear the chime and I remember to pause, take a deep breath, and acknowledge I need help from The Greatest Guy Ever. Then, I can count my blessings, change my perspective, and move on with my day until I need that same reminder again two hours later. Hey – I never said I was perfect!

After my close call with the meltdown of all meltdowns, I got on with the day. And a good day it was! After the standard morning routine around here, I went out and lived. You know – that thing that comes before blogging. Peter and I met up on his lunch break for some play time with the kids at the park.

It’s so perfect that his work is a relatively short drive from home and right next to a park just the right size for Makenzie. It’s always so empty mid-day too. It’s a little haven for our family to get some quality time together.

This day’s park fun focused on one thing: the swings!!! Makenzie has long been obsessed with swings. We used to have to beg her to go play with other kids on the playground because she would easily spend the entire hour or so at the park having us push her in the swings. Now, she loves climbing and sliding more…except when she sees her brother get his first taste of the swings.

He started off a little unsure…so Makenzie decided to show him how its done.

He couldn’t take his eyes off her! So cute how much he looks up to his big sis.

After that, little B got the swing of it (ha!) and joined the fun.

The joy in his face here just melts me! Could that picture BE any cuter?! <—Yes, I watch too much Friends still.

It was the perfect little afternoon at the park. And when the chime on my phone went off on my way home, I needed no help remembering to thank God for my blessings.

And if you’re up for a little video fun of the park…here ya go!

What was your favorite thing to do on the playground growing up?

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LUNA BAR GIVEAWAY WINNERS (chosen from random.org):

• Coco @ Got 2 Run 4 Me (#203)
• Michelle Fritzier -reader (#132)
• Jennifer @ The Blessed Home (#117)
• Chelsey @ Clean Eating Chelsey (#150)
• Lindsay @ The Lean Green Bean (#38)

Check your email so you can claim your prize!

My mom has had another multiple sclerosis relapse and is in the hospital.

Talk about a damper to a day that started off on a high note – coming off from a crazy good weekend, having a productive morning, and feeling the love from my little ones.

Then, I get a call around 9:30 this morning. From my mom, all laid back and asking how I’m doing and about my weekend…but, oh by the way – “I’m in the hospital because I had trouble breathing and they don’t know why”. What the what now?!!?! But, that’s my mom. The quintessential selfless woman always worrying about others and glossing over her own struggles.

I love my mom. And not to sound hoakey or anything, but aside from Jesus she is the biggest inspiration in how I hope to live my life and the kind of person I want to be. Every time I hear she faces another relapse or has another scare related to the MS, a little piece of me crumbles. Yet she somehow remains so strong.

She was diagnosed this past February after having some weakness in her legs and trouble walking. Her regular medicine normally helps her feel fairly normal, but it seems every two months things become more difficult on her lower body again. The treatment for her relapses typically helps her to function as normal again within a few weeks. It carries standard side effects of additional fatigue, headaches, and nausea, but my mom just acts like my mom and sails through it all as serenely as possible.

This time was different.

After three days on the treatment for her relapse, she started noticing some trouble breathing. She was advised to stay home, rest, and monitor her breathing. It became worse and she ended up in the hospital last night around 9 pm. She had to be placed on an oxygen machine and has remained on it since last night. Every time they try to allow her to breathe on her own, her oxygen levels drop significantly.

The doctors are unsure whether this is a side effect or possible allergic reaction to the treatment or separate from treatment and caused by the MS. She has received numerous tests (an EKG, X-Ray on her chest, and CAT Scan on her lungs) to help determine the cause. The uncertainty and lack of answers bother me the most. Yet, there’s my mother. Full of peace…at least outwardly…and worrying about others.

Obviously, I spent my afternoon visiting her without a second thought to the spin class I missed or the list of to-dos that would not get done. I baked her peach muffins (recipe tomorrow) instead of folding laundry. I shared Mama Pea with her instead of hoarding the laughs for myself. And the Glamour? Just in case the Mama Pea stories make my mom cry….that’s just how she is.

It’s days like today that make me so grateful to have my faith.

It’s days like today that remind me that our relationships with others and with God are the only two things that truly matter in this life.

And it’s every day that I love my mom and pray for her body’s strength, her doctor’s guidance, and her heart’s peace. Would you mind doing the same for us today?

Thank you. And I know she says it too…thank you. Just before she asks you how you’re doing and what she can do to help you, of course. Oh, mom. I love you.