Last Tuesday was a typical Tuesday for us. Hectic, but normal. On Tuesdays and Thursdays Tucker and I pick Dustin up from school and take him to speech/occupational therapy, then we head to pick up the big kids from school. Immediately after we get the big kids Dylan has karate. Again, hectic, but our norm. We've all gotten used to it. Believe it or not the most hectic part begins at 4:30 when we get home. We have 3 hours to cram in homework, dinner, baths and "family" time. Daddy had just gotten home from work and we were all excited to see him and oblivious to anything else going on. All of a sudden I look up and there is our sweet Dustin holding this white box. A box I didn't recognize. "Where did that come from?", I ask.
"The man at the door gave it to me", he says.
"The man at the door? What man at the door? When was there a man at the door?", I ask a little confused. In my head I'm thinking...wait, why did you open the door for a man without Mommy knowing? Better yet - how was there a man at the door that you knew about and I didn't?
"Who cares about the man at the door...can't we just see what is in the box?", Dylan says.
"Yes, Mommy will see what is in the box", I say a little hesitant. I begin to cut the box open as all 4 kids are standing around me trying to be the first to get a glimpse at what was in the box. I take a quick peek and actually see what is in the box. I quickly close the box and tell the children that I am very sorry, but you won't be able to see what is inside of this box. It's for Mommy and Daddy! Wink!
"Awww, no fair", Dylan complains.
"Can't you just at least tell us what it is?", Madi asked in a very concerned voice.
"That makes me angry!", Dustin yelled.
I smile and say, "Sorry guys. It's not for children." I'm sure you can only imagine all of the whining and grunting, the "no fairs" and complaining that were going on at this point. Finally, after a few minutes of their pouting and me getting to see all of the goodies in the box I say, "Hey, do y'all wanna know what is in this box?!" They all came running!! I wait until they are all gathered around and I open the box just a little bit. I have 8 hands trying to help me pull the box down to their level and rip the top open as fast as they possibly could! When they finally lay their eyes on the goodies inside of the box the whole room just goes silent. For a second. Literally.
"Wow! Cool! Those are for us?", Madi squeals
Dylan chimes in with, "Can we have that instead of dinner?"
So, I bet you are wondering what in the world these delicious treats could be? Let me just tell you about these beyond amazing apples and cookies that we got! We got six apples that were covered in caramel, and chocolate and some type of candied frosting. Oh. My. Word. I can't even tell you how yummy they were. They were so big that Scotty and I were able to share them! We also got these adorable cookies that were shaped like apples, butterflies and cars! The kids loved them! Thank you so much to Emily and her family for taking the time to bless us with such a special treat. We enjoyed them so much!
While we enjoyed our treats there was so much more to it than a sweet treat. It was a treat for my heart. It felt so good to know that someone took a few minutes out of their day to send our family a hand written card and a sweet treat. It really made me stop and think. It challenged me. I so enjoyed being blessed by my sweet friend Emily, but I too would love to bless my friends. So, I have challenged myself to send a friend, relative or an acquaintance something each month this year. It doesn't have to be something big. It doesn't have to be expensive. The saying stands....it truly is "the thought that counts".
Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing.-1 Peter 3:9
