Thanksgiving

My Wal-Mart moment: Yesterday was not a good day for me. I took the day off to meet the carpet cleaners at the house to have the carpets done before the holidays. He was suppose to arrive at 8:00 - he didn't get there until 9:45. It was suppose to take two hours - he took three. The carpets were suppose to be dry by yesterday evening - they were still damp this morning. Richard and I had spent the evening before moving everything off the floor and onto the larger pieces of furniture (visualize beds, tables, and couches loaded down with toys and baby stuff). Needless to say, dinner was not happening at home so we went to CiCi's Pizza. After pizza we decided to go to Wal-Mart to do the holiday food shopping and give the carpets a little more time to dry. We walked all over Wal-Mart loading the cart with stuff to cook good dinners when Reagan became fussy so Richard decided to take the kids to the car while I finished. My debit card is in my pocket as he headed to the car so I can pay for the groceries. I finish gathering up the rest of what we need - including picking the perfect turkey to take to Mom's house on Thanksgiving. I get to the register, load up the belt, wait for the clerk to scan the items, and reach for my debit card only to find - no card. I search the floor around the register and look in the grocery bags to see if somewhere in my rush I had taken it from my pocket and sacked it. NO CARD TO BE FOUND! I call Richard on his cell and have him send Mason in with his card so I can pay, but the people behind me are getting anxious so I tell the lady to give me one of those little slips to pay with and I will pay at customer service. As Mason arrives at the register, I realize I probably lost my debit card somewhere in the store so we head back to look for it. All I can think is, "Will this day ever end?" We circle through the produce section (did I mention Wal-Mart was out of green onions? - yet another thing that had not gone my way) - no debit card. We walk down the baking goods aisle (also no German chocolate cake mixes) - no debit card. Then we go to the large freezers of turkeys and there, in front of the largest cooler, which I had reached deep into to grab the perfect turkey, lies my debit card. Just as I am thinking, "At least something has gone my way today," I see an elderly man with a turkey TV dinner and realize that is probably his Thanksgiving feast. Mason and I go back to customer service to pay for my buggy full of groceries and standing in front of us is a mother, pushing her buggy, with her son, who is about Reagan's age, but doesn't have any arms or legs - he has hands and feet, but no arms or legs. As I am explaining to Mason as we get in the car what was wrong with that little boy who was so similar to his baby sister, but so different at the same time, I thank God for working in wonderfully, mysterious ways. I think he "misplaced" my debit card to make me appreciate my house full of wet carpet, healthy children, and friends and family - even if we aren't eating green onions or German chocolate cake. From our family to yours - may your life be as full of wet carpet and chaos as ours - Happy Thanksgiving!