Circus Clown

Many times when I go out, I feel like a circus. It seems like that familiar circus music follows me, beckoning people to look at me/us. Some events are more "Barnum and Bailey"ish than others. Like today at the 4 hour swim meet at the University Aquatics Center.

First of all , I may have knocked over 10 people with the bag of necessities that I had to bring for my spectators. There were 10 PB&J sandwiches, some minus the J, some minus the crusts, some cut in half, quarters and not cut at all. (You can see that I am not a short order cook, you eat it the way I make it....uh-huh, sure.) We also have changes of clothes for potty training Sophia, diapers, because we're not quite there yet, water bottles, camera, other snacks that will be spilled, and an umbrella stroller for my little one that likes mom to carry her everywhere.

Then, we shimmied down a very steep staircase to a row with a good view and admittedly this is where we made the mistake. We didn't sit on the end. Don't ask me how we fumbled this up. We always sit on the end because we don't want to bug people. Today I wanted to be able to see my son swim and we were there early, so we scooted in too far.

Apparently the family that did sit on the end, did not see the circus performing in the middle of the row. I say this because when their Grandma got out her cross stitch project and put her bag of extra thread in the tiny walkway between her and the backs of the chairs in front of her, she must have thought that once you are seated, that is it, no moving. She gave me a lot of looks each and every time we had to get up and excuse ourselves and step over her project. She even gave me a look when I made sure to not walk past them because their kid was swimming, a courtesy she did not offer to Omar when he was trying to snap a pic of Josh. Even as we left for the last time and I said "We are out of your hair now, have a nice day," she said, "mm-hmm."

I am very well aware that having a "large" family is a little out of the ordinary. As much as we try, I know that we are going to be in the way sometimes. As much as I don't want to ever impose on anyone, I know that we do. I didn't grow up in a circus, but that was God's plan for my life. So I am learning to just be shot out of the canon and hope that the net catches me.