Inconvenience turned to blessings

It was one of those mornings. You know, the mornings where everything seems to take more time than usual. The kids took longer getting dressed, I burned the toast, my oldest couldn’t find her shoes. By some miracle I got my daughter out the door in time to walk to school with her friends – and then of course I realized I had forgotten to give her one of her last doses of an antibiotic. I scooped up my four-year-old twins, packed them into the car (without shoes or jackets) and drove to my daughter’s school.

The bell rang right as I pulled up to the school. I ran to the back door and saw that the doors had just barely closed on the last student. I banged on the door. A sweet teacher heard me and let me in. I ran to my daughter’s classroom and administered the medicine before her teacher started class.

I let out a deep sigh. Phew! I thought. I made it.

I hugged my daughter goodbye and walked down the hall. Imagine my astonishment as I exited the school and saw, to my delight, a huge bright red hot air balloon hovering over the playground. I stopped dead in my tracks and breathed in with awe as I watched the massive hot air balloon descend closer and closer. I started to run.

I reached my van in a flash, and threw open the doors to share the experience with my daughters who had patiently waited in the car.

I carried them barefoot across the street and watched as the beautiful balloon landed on the school grounds. We were mesmerized.

I am so thankful my daughter forgot to take her medicine!

Looking back on my twenty years as a mother and stepmom I am amazed at the many moments that seemed like an inconvenience at the time and then turned into a beautiful blessing.

For several years, Geoff and I would drive five hours from Salt Lake City to pick up my step kids from the co-parent that lived in Castle Rock Colorado. It seemed like an inconvenience to drive such a long distance to get the kids for our holidays or weekends. Looking back though, those hours in the cars made for fun memories.

We shared stories, caught up on the latest happenings in our children’s world, sang on the top of our lungs to favorite songs and stopped to grab a burger or ice cream.  We look back on those drives with a smile.

Funny how life goes. You never know where opportunities for connections will come or when you might feel frustrated at an inconvenience only to find a miraculous hot air balloon landing in your path.  🙂