And it goes something like this

Our church block recently changed from the 2-5 p.m. block (ugh!!) to the 8-11 a.m. block (ugh.) Both have their perks, and both have their major drawbacks. Of course, the drawback to 8 a.m. church is having to get up extra early to get everyone ready that early, and then be tired through the majority of church. Ella usually sleeps until 8, so we wake her up right before we leave and throw a dress on her. (This does help her go all 3 hours without a nap. She will NOT sleep in anyone's arms.)

Since we are always running late, no matter what time church is (this is a weakness of mine and Samuel's that really needs to be turned into a strength. Ether 12:27) I knew 8 a.m. church would be tricky.

But I also have an amazing mother to look to for an example. She not only got SIX kids ready for church before the 8 a.m. block (4 of them girls) but she also had to get my great-grandma ready too, who was suffering from Alzheimers, and was kind of like taking care of a grown-up baby. I remember my mom telling me that she would get up at 5:30 on those mornings, in order to get to church on time.

I figured that I can't really complain. I haven't even been getting up before 7. The first Sunday I showered and straightened my hair the night before. I got out of bed at 7:09, and we were 10 minutes late to church. I knew I needed to keep working on it.

The NEXT Sunday I got a little smarter and used some of my mom's old tricks- #1 was to lay out all the clothes everyone would be wearing the night before, and #2 was to put foam curlers in my girls' hair on Saturday night, so it would be super quick to do their hair in the morning. That was a GREAT idea, and helped immensely. I also did my hair the night before. And I got up at 7:00 instead of 7:09. But we were still about 8 minutes late. Dang it! (*Disclaimer- getting up early is about the hardest thing anyone could ever ask of me. My body fights and resists with everything it can. No matter how early I go to bed, I never feel rested or energized in the morning. That's why I was trying to sleep in as long as possible- and still make it to church on time.)

The third Sunday was a bit different. I had been asked to accompany a musical number- a really, really beautiful one, sung by the Bishop's wife and someone else. We decided to run through it at 7:30 in the chapel. So I ran through the same routine of laying out clothes, putting curlers in the girls' hair, and making sure everyone went to bed at their usual, early hour.

Samuel wasn't home to help me though. He is now in school full-time (nursing program) and Paypal does not offer any part-time shifts. He is doing real estate again, and yes, that seriously stresses me out, but whatever, it's looking better this time around. Anyway, he was at his office putting in some offers on houses, and I was drained, and trying to get the girls to bed. I ended up putting the curlers in the girls hair while they were sitting at the table eating. They had already had a bath and were in pajamas. Then I went to work on getting Ella bathed and into bed. At some point Kalia and Annie ran to their bedroom to choose stories for bed time. I got Ella into bed and was feeling relieved that in just a few minutes (and two stories later) I would have Kalia and Annie asleep and I could finish cleaning up the house and be DONE with my mommy duties for the day.

BUT...I got into their bedroom to find that it was not only a total disaster, but they had taken out ALL their curlers, because they were "bugging" them. I was beyond irritated. I almost considered just leaving them out, but I knew that Samuel was going to be the one getting them dressed (and doing their hair) the next morning, and I didn't have the heart to leave it all up to him. So I put all those dang curlers back in their hair, and only read one story, and put them to bed. I'm sure I was quite cranky.

Cleaning up took longer than I hoped, and by the end of the night, I was too tired to shower AND get ready, just to go to bed. So I set my alarm for 6:30, knowing I would have to hurry, but that I could shower and get ready in 1 hour, and get to the church by 7:30, and leave everything else up to Samuel. I laid out all their clothes, watched a few hours of mindless television, and finally Samuel got home and we went to bed.

The next morning everything went smoothly, and I got to the church at 7:35. One of the singers wasn't there, so I ran through the song once on my own. Then they practiced. I ran to the bathroom to put on my mascara and brush my teeth (two little details that I hadn't gotten to) and then at 7:55, in walked Samuel and the 3 girls (and Al and Valerie, the people who live upstairs). I couldn't BELIEVE it. I don't know how he did it. Granted, the girls hair wasn't exactly "done"- it was just down with curls at the bottom, but it looked fine. But, he had failed to put on shoes or socks or tights on Ella, and it was 48 degrees outside, and she was in this little summery dress (fine for mid-day- but freezing for the early morning). Anyway, I was pretty embarrassed about that during the 3 meetings, because I was the one hauling her around all day, and she looked seriously under-dressed for a January morning.

So then, I started getting SUPER nervous about accompanying this musical number. I had only gotten the music 1 week prior, and definitely had not had time to perfect it. Instead I had simplified it as much as possible, but it still had potential for mistakes all over the place. I don't think I had played it "perfectly" all the way through even once- and I knew that while I could pull it off, but I was nervous about making some big mistakes. The pressure was even greater because the Bishop's wife, a phenomenal singer- well, she doesn't read music. She just listens to the piano, and makes up her own harmony. It's so beautiful. BUT- that means that if I hit the wrong notes, it could really throw her off. And there were a few really key notes/chords that I had to play right, otherwise it was obvious that something was wrong.

I could barely make it through the end of the sacrament before I had to bolt for the bathroom. I don't think that has ever happened to me before, that I got SO nervous and SO psyched out that my bowels actually started relaxing! (tmi? lol.) I was just so scared. About 10 minutes after I got back to my seat (on the 2nd row- I couldn't exactly slip out with anyone seeing me) Kalia and Annie realized that they REALLY REALLY had to go potty. Right that minute. I was worried about leaving again, because the musical number was after that speaker. But then I started feeling sick again, and realized I probably had to go again anyway. So I took each one of them by the hand and we sped-walked to the bathroom. We made it back in time for the speaker (a barely returned missionary from the ward) to bear his testimony and he said something that really hit me. He said, "I know that Heavenly Father loves us so much and wants us to succeed. He rejoices when we are happy..." and when he said that, it felt like a light bulb went off in my head. I KNEW that Heavenly Father wanted this musical number to be as good as I did- I KNEW that it would bring the Spirit, and I knew that He would want me to share my talents to help others feel the Spirit. I knew He wanted me to succeed, and I knew that He was going to help me. I realized how my anxiety and nerves had really prevented me from just relaxing and doing what I was capable of. I needed to relax and let Him help me. The knots in my stomach relaxed, and we went up there and did a killer performance. Not in a "proud" way, but in a way that so many people felt the Spirit of that beautiful version of "I Need Thee Every Hour." And I only made one little mistake. It was such a great experience. And very eye-opening to me, to know that I was truly psyching myself out- my brain was overriding the peace that the Spirit was trying to bring me.

Anyway- it was just an experience that I wanted to remember. I'm so grateful for the talent that took YEARS of really hard work to develop, and I'm thankful to still be able to refine it. I love having a piano in my home now, and I love the stress relief it brings me when I want to sit down and play for enjoyment.

And I love that I get to have a nap every Sunday afternoon. Oh yes. The best part of 8 a.m. church.