Well, that's one way to amass a large number of birthday greetings - just leave your post up forever and everyone will get around to reading it!

Just kidding!  Thanks again for all the nice birthday comments!  So kind!  In sharp contrast, Mother's Day was a pretty average day.  My kids don't quite get Mother's Day and unless my husband is actively involved, Mother's Day is a wash.  And I don't feel quite right about asking everyone to celebrate Mother's Day after the birthday event.  Todd worked Sat. and Sun. nights and was sleeping most of Sun, so I just asked the kids to try and be extra good that day.  And I ordered Chinese take-out for dinner, my own contribution to my day.  Those sweet ladies at the restaurant wished me a Happy Mother's Day (and I returned the greeting) and then they gave me a rose before I left.  That was really all I needed!  It's been fun reading about other bloggers' Mom's Day.  Especially the breakfast-in-bed posts.  Precious.  I seriously doubt I'll ever get that kind of treatment but it's totally o.k.

Yesterday turned out to be a learning experience for me.  I had driven into a suburb of Portland, nearly 100 miles away, to do some shopping.  As I was leaving to start the journey home, I saw a warning light on my new car's dashboard.  NO ONE wants to see a warning light now, do they?  And wouldn't it be great if those warning lights SAID what they meant in words instead of some unfamiliar symbol that doesn't seem to match anything you can find in your manual?  It looked like a fish bowl with a candle in the middle.  Seriously!  I found a good place to pull over and got out my car manual.  I finally figured out it was low tire pressure.  Hmmm.  I got out and looked at the tires and, sure enough, one was flat.  The nearest gas station was ahead on Hwy 30, at least 10 miles away and I had nothing but a sharp, curving road to drive before I got there.  Well, this is a good time to pray!  Amazingly, the car didn't feel like it was driving funny at all.  I made it to the gas station and checked the tire pressure.  Uh, wait a minute ... there WAS no tire pressure, at all!  Geesh!  And, of course, air costs 75 cents (quarters only) and, of course, I only had 1 quarter.  I went inside the station and got quarters, returned and put air in the tire.  Did I mention that this was the hottest day we've had all year?  It was 95 degrees.  95!!  No big deal if one is used to it but just the day before, I was still cold and wearing a sweater.  That's the way it is here, quite often.  It's cold forever and then one day, boom, you get a sweltering day.  And not just hot but WINDY.  Not the usual cold wind we get but a really hot wind, like the Santa Ana winds I grew up with.  Anyway, there I was, sweaty, hot, filling the tire, checking the pressure, praying that the tire would get me home.

It didn't.  About a mile down the road, the fish bowl light appeared again.  This wasn't good.  I pulled over and called my dh (again).  I could have called AAA (our roadside membership) but since the car was still driveable, I decided to keep going, being so far from home and all.  Several miles down the highway, I spotted a car dealer and I pulled in.  They agreed to put my spare tire on for me but when they found out how far I had to drive to get home, they suggested I go further down a few blocks to a tire store and see if they could fix the tire.  I thanked the guys who helped me and headed down the highway.  It was getting late but the tire store was still open.  They were so nice, they took the tire off right away to inspect it ... then they showed me the 8" steel nail that punctured the tire, bent and then shredded a big hole in it.  Yikes!  They didn't have a tire to match so my dh said to have them put the spare on and just come home.  When I asked the tire people how much I owed them, they said it would be "Free dollars".  At first I didn't understand, then I got the joke!  By now, I am wind-blown, really hot and sweaty and probably not smelling the greatest.  But I thanked them graciously and started on my way home, being warned not to go more than 40-50 mph.  So I went 43 mph all the way home.  I must have pulled over 10 times to let cars pass me (Hwy 30 is a 2 lane hwy for much of the stretch to the coast).  I kept looking in my rear view mirror to check for cars and once I looked up and saw a red truck behind me.  In the next instant, suddenly a police car appeared with flashing lights and siren blaring!  Where he came from, I do not know.  I skidded to the side of the road to let him by and sat there to collect myself a bit.  Boy was I glad he wasn't after me!  By this time, I just wanted to get home, you know?  It was 4:00 when I originally left to head home but it was 7:30 before I got there.  It should have only taken 2 hours.  You tend to feel a bit cheated out of your day when something like this happens.  I was so glad to turn into our driveway.  I was tense all the way home because of the spare tire and worried about the people behind me.  I did have a few cars drive up suddenly and pass me too fast but most people kept their distance and didn't tail me.  God kept me safe and I when I was afraid, He helped me.  My husband took care of the kids and dinner was ready when I got home.  Bless him. 

Today was another learning experience.  When we bought this car (about 3 weeks ago) we paid for a program that would give us discounts on several services, including tires.  I called the program center and asked how to proceed with this tire claim.  We made an appointment with the car dealer and my husband took the tire in for me (another "bless him"!)  His appt. was at 1:00 pm.  By 3:00 pm, I called my dh and he said he was still waiting for the program center to approve his claim.  This wasn't right.  So I called the program center and they said they hadn't received the claim.  They said they needed pictures of the damaged tire before they could approve a new one and they hadn't heard from the car dealer.  I'm starting to get frustrated at this point.  I called the car dealer and explained the situation.  They said they emailed the photos.  I said, "Well, the program center hasn't received them.  Can you follow up on this?"  Within 10 minutes, my husband called me back to say that all had been approved and they were putting on the tire.  I was furious that they made him wait 2 hours for something that should have only taken 10-15 minutes.  He was 50 miles away as well, which meant he had to hang out somewhere all that time (in another sweltering day).  It turns out that the guy at the car dealer did email the photos but attached the wrong customer name to the photos.  I was so glad I called everyone and made things happen.  I think God gave me that nudge.  If I hadn't have intervened, my husband would still be there (o.k., he wouldn't be there this late but you get the picture!)

Lessons learned:

     1.  Read your car owner's manual.  Sometimes a fish bowl isn't a fish bowl. 

     2.  Pack extra food/water and maybe an extra shirt when you have to travel over 50 miles away from home.

     3.  Never assume people will take care of things for you.  You must follow up on things yourself.  People make mistakes.  Keep your cool and ask for help - people usually respond in kind.  Smile a lot and thank everyone who helps you.  Never assume help is free - always offer to pay.

I finally remembered when and where I hit that stupid 8 inch nail.  I had heard a loud thump under the car but I didn't see anything in the road before I heard it and when I looked in the mirror behind me, I saw nothing.  But then I wouldn't see something like that, would I?  No, today was just one of those days that you see the lessons you had to learn and thank the Lord for being at your side.  And be grateful for the kindness of those who tried to help.