A couple of weeks ago, when Alex and I were riding down the road, he said, “Hey Mama?” in the absolute sweetest inquisitive tone you can imagine.

I answered, “Yes, precious darlin’ angel boy?” [okay, slight exaggeration. But I was feeling much love in that moment.]

And my child – the one for whom I have provided gentle, loving care, the one for whom I have suffered all manner of insufferable diapers, the one for whom I have sacrificed every single shred of my pride – replied with, “Are you CRAZY, Mama?”

At the time I giggled a little and said, “No, buddy – Mama’s not crazy.” And then he giggled along with me and oh if we weren’t the McGigglesons in my car, yukking it up as we made our way down the road.

Oh, silly Alex. Asking Mama if she was crazy? Witty, clever child.

But I’ve thought about that exchange several times over the last couple of days, and I’ve decided that the toddler, he was on to something.

Because here’s the thing.

I. AM. SLAP. CRAZY.

I can’t even begin to tell you what the last three or four days have been like. But the word that comes to mind is the one that I’ve already overused abundantly in this post, so I won’t say “the ‘c’ word” again.

Most of the time I do a decent job of managing my commitments. I’m involved in more activities than I talk about here, mainly because some of the stuff I do requires a certain degree of confidentiality.

You know, the spy stuff.

But aside from dismantling smart bombs, perfecting my faux accents, and mastering the art of ka-RAH-tay (“Friends,” anyone?), I think I went a bit overboard with my shed-ule this past week. In fact, I know I did.

Last week when I was doing my Bible study homework, there was a question that said, “Are you trying to do so much that you’re failing to do some of it well?” I immediately answered, “yes,” listed the stuff that I needed to back away from for awhile, and actually got pretty proactive about making some changes.

Here. I have proof.

1) I decided not to do VBS at church this year. I initially volunteered to help so that Alex could go to the activities that they plan for the teachers’ kids who are ages 1-4, because, well, the child adores an activity (I don’t know where he gets it). But you know, he and I can do plenty of fun things at home the week of VBS, maybe even go see a relative or two, and there’s absolutely no law that says I MUST PARTICIPATE. So no VBS.

2) I found a person to take over this cookie ministry thing I do at our church (you join the church, you get homemade cookies delivered to your front door). Getting people to bake cookies wasn’t the problem, but getting the deliveries done was becoming a problem. You can imagine the joy that comes from dragging your three year old to all parts of town as you try to make 11 cookie deliveries on a Monday afternoon. So, yay, me. I’ve handed off the cookies.

But here’s what this week has made me realize. Those two things that I was so proud of giving up? Not even a DROP IN THE BUCKET.

I’m not one of those people who has a hard time saying “no” – quite the contrary – but I am one of those people who likes to “do.” The problem is, over the last few months, the “doing” feels like it’s taking over. And I need, oh-so-desperately, to just “be” for awhile. Allow me to use “quotes” one more “time” in this “paragraph.”

This weekend has the potential for lo, even more craziness. Alex has a friend’s birthday party (we’re SO not going), I have a college graduation party for a girl I used to teach, I have a house that needs my attention, I’m on standby waiting for a shipment for some of this stuff I do that I don’t talk about (no biggie – just a large cache of confiscated missile parts), I have a special service to attend Sunday afternoon, and I would like to, at some point, sleep.

So here’s my plan. I’ll get my LBY post up sometime tonight or tomorrow morning. And then I’m going to take a couple of days off from blogging. It’s not that I don’t love it – have mercy, sometimes I think I enjoy writing about my life as much as I enjoy living it (which is, you know, a problem) – but I’ve just got to make some time to wind down, lest this whirling dervish get caught in the middle of an irreversible tizzy.

And I’m sure I’ll dream up even more astoundingly average content over the weekend, which should give all of you something to feel ambivalent about while I’m gone.

Is all my sidebar stuff showing up on your computer?

Because it’s completely missing from mine, and I can’t figure out why.

Let the troubleshooting begin…. :-)

Bev tagged me to write about a few things that help me manage my time. At first I laughed a little bit because I can be a total procrastinator and some days waste time as if I were trying to win some form of Time Wasting Competition (that would be a terribly original name for such a contest, wouldn’t it?).

But there are several things I do around here that make life easier and more efficient.

1. I keep one of those dry erase board calendars on my refrigerator. Every month I take Alex’s Mother’s Day Out calendar and list everything on my calendar…due dates, picture days, birthday parties, etc. I list everything that we have going on at church, everything D. and I have happening, and bascially put our entire month’s schedule on there. It keeps me sane.

2. I catch up on phone calls when I’m sitting in traffic. There’s been all kinds of construction on the road that leads to our house, and inevitably I’ll pick A. up from Mother’s Day Out and end up sitting in traffic for 30 minutes trying to get up the mountain. It’s a great time to return calls, check in on friends, etc., especially considering that Alex is typically sound asleep in the backseat within five minutes of picking him up.

And yes, I’m very, very careful when I use the phone in the car. I hold the phone at the 10 and 2 position, plus I dial and hang up with the same foot – none of that two footed dialing in my car. No ma’am.

3. I make my grocery list in order of the aisles in the store [now I’m ducking so that I’m not hit by the objects y’all are hurling at your computer screens]. But it helps me so much…time is of the essence when grocery shopping with a toddler who considers it his life’s mission to become close, personal friends with all the Publix customers and employees.

Now that I’ve written this post, it feels a little like the Works For Me Wednesday that Shannon does, so just consider it Works For Me Wednesday, two days late – which is very much in keeping with my procrastinatory* tendencies – as well as Time Management 101, which is what Bev asked me to do in the fist place. Killing two birds with one stone, if you will. Though I’m certainly not advocating the stoning of birds.

*And I totally just made up that word. At first I thought it really was a word, then I realized no, no it isn’t, but I’m leaving it because it’s my blog and I can.

A few pictures from this week’s Adventures of Alex…

Best part about a trip to the zoo? The carousel. But NOT when the carousel stops. Carousel stopping is obviously the work of the devil.

And here’s the thing with chickens. To fully understand them, you really have to get down on their level.

All the classes at A.’s Mothers’ Day Out made these hats. He’s very proud that he painted the dots, by the way. He would tell you ALL about the dots if you asked him. Very proud.

I’m proud that we convinced him to keep the hat on his head for more than four seconds because, well, with a hat this big, you’ve gotta get a picture.

He gets bigger every day, it seems.

Sigh.

Alex is in quite the “Finding Nemo” phase…he wants to watch it every night before he goes to bed, and he talks about it first thing every morning. He especially loves the part where Nemo disobeys his daddy and swims out past the drop-off – inevitably Alex looks at me with great seriousness in his eyes and says, “Mama. Nemo touched the boat. Nemo gets time out. He’s disobedient, Mama.”

And at that moment, at least inside my head, I high-five myself, just a little bit.

Anyway, David and I are in the midst of an ongoing debate regarding the end of the movie. I’m hoping that the internet can resolve it.

Here is the issue:

In the final scenes of the movie, what exactly is the nature of the relationship between the daddy, Marlin, and Dory, the fish who helped him to find Nemo?

The first time I asked David this question, he looked at me like I had horns growing out of my head and said, “They’re FRIENDS.”

But I am a woman, and with women relationships are rarely, if ever, that simple. Especially when single people are involved.

I personally believe that Marlin and Dory may be, well, dating.

Here’s why.

When Marlin and Dory are trapped inside the whale, Dory tells Marlin she never wants to forget what it’s like to be with him, because being with him feels like home. Those aren’t “just friends” words, people.

Then, when Nemo goes back to school towards the end of the movie, Dory is there when Mr. Ray picks him up, and she says, “See you after school, Nemo!” Which implies that she’s around a lot.

I’m just sayin’.

Two single fish…both funny…bonded together by adventure…sounds like a recipe for love, if you ask me.

p.s. – Yes. Insane. Yes. :-)

Carol tagged me for this short little meme….

What is your favorite word? Based on this blog, it’s apparently either “just” or “really.” I seem to like those two words more than the rest. :-)

What is your least favorite word? “Religious.” Not a fan.
And for what it’s worth, I also really dislike the word “spore.”

What turns you on creatively, spiritually or emotionally?
Creatively – writing for my blog. I’ve written more in the last six months than I have since college, and this time I actually, you know, enjoy the writing. I wonder if David regrets encouraging me to write again, because let’s face it: I’ve gone waaay past “hobby” with this blog thing. I believe a more appropriate word would be “obsession.”

Spiritually – I love me a sermon series or a Bible study presented by a wise teacher – learning really gets me going. Music does, too…on Sunday mornings, the music definitely prepares my heart for the teaching that follows.

Emotionally – Unexpected sweetness pretty much melts my heart.

What turns you off? Arrogance – in any shape or form.

What is your favorite curse word? OH this is a very different answer than it would have been 10 years ago (I came away from graduate school with a big ole case of potty mouth). So it is a great victory for me to be able to tell you that my favorite curse word is “dadgumit.” The South, you know. I also say, “oh have mercy” about 45 times a day.

What sound or noise do you love? I love hearing Alex talk to himself before he falls asleep. And I also love to hear what he says when he first walks downstairs in the mornings…every single day, he seems surprised that his daddy and I are still there: “OH! HEY MAMA! HEY DADDY! DID YA SLEEP GOOD? CAN I HAVE WAFFLE WITH SYRUP? PLEEEEEEEASE?”

And I typed that in all caps because the child talks in all caps. All caps, all the time.

What sound or noise do you hate? The sound a knife and fork make when they rub against each other. Also, the imagined sound of someone chewing on tinfoil makes me shudder.

What profession other than your own would you like to attempt? Christian counselor.

What profession would you not like to do? Anything involving the analysis of numbers would drive. me. slowly. insane.

If Heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the Pearly Gates? “Hey, sweet girl* – I’ve been waiting on you all your life. And you can find the TiVo room down the hall on your right, right past the chocolate fountain and the bottomless diet Coke spigot. Enjoy!”

I’m tagging anyone who needs a meme because they’re fresh out of stuff to write about. ;-)

* – and it’s not that I’m so sweet. AT ALL. It’s that He’s God. And I just think He would say “sweet girl,” because He’s personal like that. :-)