fear, wonder, and hope

This scares me..

On the way home from Target last week the girl (yes, girl.. she looked like she was barely 18) driving the car in front of me was smoking. And texting. I could see her little baby face perfectly the way her side view mirror was angled- and it looked like her eyes were barely open as she looked down at her phone.

When our red light turned green- she didn't move. I yelled out "stop texting and drive your car!".. and eventually she did. Drive her car I mean.. but she did keep texting as she turned off towards the highway. I am too old and careful and.. a parent driving her children around for people like that.


This makes me wonder what's wrong with people..

On the way home one day, I had a few minutes before I needed to pick Lily up (which doesn't happen. ever.) so I decided to make one more stop. I found my things and headed to the register with a sleeping Noah in my arms. There was another little boy, younger than Noah, toddle-running near the registers with his mom. He wasn't all over the store, but he was getting further away from her than it seemed like he should, but by the time it was our turn at the register I stopped paying attention to what he was doing.

I paid and started out the door when I heard some scuffling and voices behind me. I turned a little, but didn't see the other boy so I kept walking. In between the two sets of doors I saw him try to scurry by me as I heard a woman calling out to him. I stooped a little, while still carrying my own 2 year old, to try to stop him before he got by me, but I missed. So I reached out further and managed to grab the top of his collar just as he got up to the second set of doors (and then would have been out in the busy parking lot). He stopped, turned, and looked up at me. And that was it.

The woman, not his mom but whoever was with her, that came up behind us a second later, said.. nothing. Not. One. Thing. As she lead him back into the store.


But this makes up for it. A little..

I made a quick run through the grocery store with a tired toddler that wanted no part of it. I got more than I meant to and by the time we made it to the checkout, Noah was fast asleep. In my arms. And I still had to take everything out of the cart and get it onto the belt. Hmm.

I bent sideways.. and backwards.. and started pulling things out one by one. After 3 or 4 items.. the woman behind me asked if I needed some help. And I've got to admit it surprised the heck out of me. I've dealt with all kinds of children nonsense at the register.. but never once had anyone ever asked me if I needed help.

So, I just laughed (in that way that meant 'oh, this? this is NOTHING.) and told her no, but thank you. She must have been a mother..