Dressed to impress?

SIDE NOTE: From here on out our girls will be referred to as apples. For security reasons of course. Our oldest is Red Delicious or RD, middle is Gala, & our baby is Honey Crisp or HC.

So for those of you that are following or *coughs* read my last couple of posts, you now know my husband and I have started attending Church. While I enjoy attending it has taken some getting used to. We have joined the Catholic Church. There are things Catholics do at mass that you may not be familiar with if you were not raised Catholic. Which neither of us were. So trying to figure out the missal, when to sit, stand, recite (OK, what prayer everyone is praying in unison) took a little time. We aren't even close to having it down but we're getting there.

Our other dilemma is attending mass with the girls in tow. It feels like a reenactment of the Civil War. We've attended every time frame of mass they offer. Deciphering which time is better for us, the perfect pew to sit or if other kids are present. We don't need ALL the attention on us. We take an arsenal of items: paper, crayons, toys, drinks, several different snacks, & all the diapering supplies. Now you might think that could keep 3 angels busy, right? Well it doesn't. I'm open to EVERY suggestion you guys have.

Our first couple of times we went alone. No need to bring the kids to something we had no clue about. I've been to other Churches were parents have their angels in tow. Never seemed to bug me. Maybe it's exaggerated because they're mine this time. Who knows.

The first time the girls went RD got very impatient fast. She wanted to go home, NOW. So she started chanting "I don't like Jesus" over n over. Thank you Lord everyone was singing praise. She was drown out. BUT my face was flush.

We always sit in the very last pew. It sits farther from the pew directly in front so there is more wiggle room for the kids, car seat & bag of goods. It also gives RD plenty of room to use the kneeler as a balance bar & Gala can't escape out the back because there's something (no, I don't have a clue what it is) firmly planted behind "our" pew. Her only options are to high tail it out the side (Daddy sits there so no chance of that happening) & going under the pew to the one in front of us (which has happened). Luckily she hits feet & gets stuck which makes her turn back toward us. I often wonder what the person in front of us thought about when they chose that pew. I'd of seen our mess of a family & kept on trucking.

I personally love sitting close to the front. I can't see a dang thing going from the back. If I was on Facebook, I'd hit the dislike button (if there was an option) about back row pews. About a month back I got a crazy idea. The girls have to be used to this by now & I wanna see. So I headed in & traveled half way up the aisle. The husband was in panic mode. I reassured him we'd be fine. Half way through mass HC started fussing. My darling husband, being the wonderful guy he is, picks her up & heads out the back. Gala goes crazy (she's a major Daddy's girl). I try calming her. After minutes, which felt like an hour, I decided to pack it up. I gathered our arsenal up off the floor & jammed it into the bag, grabbed a missal so I could start learning the mass better, swooped up Gala, hissed at RD to come on, genuflected, made the sign of the cross, & headed down the aisle disheveled. I am met with glares & wide eyes. Oh come people, have you never seen crazy kids? I open the doors & reached victory. I made it out with the girls in tow, alive. I see my husband's lovely face & felt a sense of relief wash over me. We head to the car. I throw our ransacked possessions into the car, buckle in Gala, plop myself into my seat, & grab for the seat belt. My face fills with embarrassment. My top is connected by 2 lonely buttons. The bottom 2. The ta-ta's are free. No wonder every eye was on me as I walked the plank......

Deep sigh. I still have to show my face there. Lessoned learned. No more button up tops. This is what the darling husband offered as his brand of encouragement. I'm sure they'll just say "There comes the crazy family. You know the ones with the screaming kids & undressed mother. Yeah the one that took the missal! That's them!" Thanks Honey, you always know how to make me feel better. :)