The Panicking Mom - Both Audio and Text Versions

Danny’s got a baseball game at 4 this afternoon, and Sarah’s playing soccer at 4:30. Holy cow! Tommy’s in a tournament that starts at 3 p.m., and if he’s going to make it, he would have to leave right now. I can do the baseball game…you can do the soccer…but Tommy’s gonna have to hitch a ride with Jill and Rod. We can eat at Burger King…they can eat at Wendy’s, and I’ll give Jill a couple bucks for Tommy. Oh, my God… I forgot…tonight is Uncle Theo’s birthday party. Gonna be a big surprise. We really need to go. Better late than not at all. No time to buy a gift…but I don’t think he’ll really care…or prob’ly even know. He’s been slipping pretty fast…we really ought to be there. Once we’re all back home we’ll clean up quick and run on down. Don’t forget, it saves a little time to go the back way. Lately it’s been taking quite a while to go through town. After church tomorrow morning, Linda’s going swimming over at the park with Mary Becker and her three. I gave Mary fifty cents. Boy, that ticks me off! I believe that children under five should swim for free. Danny’s feet are gettin’ huge. Before the season’s over, I’ll bet we’ll have to buy that kid another pair of spikes! And…though they furnish free replacements…Sarah’s tattered jersey wound up in my sewing pile ‘cause -- that’s the one she likes! Tommy’s lost his glove again, so now he borrows Melvin’s, but when they play each others’ teams, the coach makes Tommy sit. Looks as though I’m gonna have to make a run to Walmart and buy that absent-minded little turd another mitt. Thank the Lord for hand-me-downs and garage sales now and then. I swear these four are gonna keep us broke for several years! But every time I think about the times I’ve watched them play, and cheered with pride at what they do, or laughed myself to tears, Watching as they tried their very best to get it right, giving close to everything they’ve got to play their part, Mass confusion… unexpected costs…and hectic schedules somehow never seem to find a home within my heart. Because they fill our souls with so much joy and so much love, though we whine, we soon forget the things that drive us nuts. Just the same, there are those times when staying calm is tough, and it gets hard to fight the urge to - smack their little butts! PS: I've got 4 new CDs - @ 4 1/2 hours each = (62 diversely varied poems), listed on EBAY - under - “Mark Stellinga Poetry” - should those of you who travel care to be so entertained. (We use PayPal) Cheers, Mark