The Judgement Seat...

Wow, I've meant to post pictures of our trip, but still haven't gotten around to it! So, I'm going to post about my very unproductive day! I so felt like a criminal this morning! My court date was set for today, March 9th...ah, but let me back up.

Last month, I was driving home from my once-a-week-orchestra-rehearsal, and was pulled over by a policeman. When I left Charleston, I did notice a police car, but checked my speed, and figured I was fine...no big deal. As I was pulling into Ashmore, I saw police lights behind me. My first thought, was, "Oh, no! Is it a fake?" Justin had told me recently about unmarked vehicles pulling people over between here and Charleston and to be extra careful. I hesitated a moment on what to do, b/c here I was, by myself at 10 pm, and no one around. I really wanted to wait to pull off, till I was actually in town, but decided it was best not to push my luck. (Duh, I should've put my hazards on, but didn't think of that!) So the policeman came up to my car and asked if everything was ok and where I was going/what was I doing, and did I realize that my left head-light was out. (Yes, I knew that, and it was getting fixed tomorrow) He said I went over the white line, and asked if I was ok. (He had followed me for a long while!) So he asked for my licence and proof of insurance. I could not, for the life of me, find my insurance card. Ahh! I was so nervous, and felt guilty, even though I wasn't...know what I mean? Finally the man came back with my licence--and by-the-way, he was young and seemed nice...maybe it was his first day on the job. He had realized it was my birthday, and asked me if I had anything to drink. (!!!! I'm thinking, goodness! Is my driving THAT bad?!!!) I quickly answered that the only beverage I had all evening was water, and pointed to my giant water bottle. He mentioned that my eyes looked bloodshot. (REALLY?!) And asked if I would do a series of tests for him. I wondered whether I should laugh or cry. He said, "Can you count?" I must've looked at him funny, b/c he quickly stated, that he's pulled college kids over that couldn't count. (what??) He had me count on my fingers, recite part of the alphabet backwards, and count from 49-35 backwards. Whew! All that review w/ my pre-schoolers came in handy...and I had the fleeting thought of asking him, if he minded if I sang it. Ha! I seriously was shaking...and wondering if Justin would be worried about me. Then he wanted to know why I didn't pull over immediately. After explaining, I think he understood where I was coming from. Finally, he decided to revoke my licence, since I couldn't find my proof of insurance. I had a court date set for March 9th, and had to be there and stand in front of the Judge. (really? all for an insurance card? oh, and we do keep our vehicles insured, by the way, I just couldn't find it in my glove box) I went on my merry way, and was incredulous about the whole experience. I seriously could not believe it! The first thing I did when I got inside the house was go and look in the mirror. My eyes were not bloodshot and I did not look drunk. I thought Justin would be up worried about me. Nope! He was fast asleep, and had no clue about my wild story till the next morning. He thought it was hilarious!

Ok, so today, I did remember that I had a court date, but I've never done this before, so I wasn't sure how it all worked. I was up early and had gotten stuff done, but I was in jogging-wear w/ no makeup on= kinda scary looking! Around 8 something I tried calling the courthouse to get more info. I couldn't get though after several tries, so I tried calling again a little bit later. I honestly thought I could go in any time today and show my proof of insurance and get my licence back. As I'm on the phone, I notice that on the ticket it says, "March 9 0900 a.m." Um...and it's 8:30, right now! The lady on the phone was anything but understanding, and said, "No, children are not allowed in the courtroom. And no, you cannot reschedule unless there's a death in your family or you're in the emergency room." I tried calling my Mom and Grandma...no answer! I was frantically running around, changed into something a bit more "classy" (ha), threw on some makeup, and was yelling for the kids to get shoes on...FAST! [Madeline dutifully obeyed...she had one Pooh slipper on, and one of her fav. pink camo gum boots on] I peeled into my parent's driveway and raced up the stairs w/ the kids. I basically pushed them inside the door and yelled, "I have court date at 9!" (and it's like 8:49) My Dad, looking very confused, was like, "Huh?" I drove very fast, down to Charleston, and was only a few minutes late! I ran into the courthouse, up to the 2nd floor, and finally plopped down in a courtroom full of people. As I caught my breath, I was looking around a bit, and thinking, "Whoa, these people need Jesus!" Various people got up to stand before the Judge for various misdemeanors...driving w/ out a licence, failure to yeild...and other things. My name was called fairly quickly and I stood before the Judge. Thankfully I only had to present my proof of insurance and my licence was returned. I didn't have to pay any fines. Really, I'm a law abiding citizen, except for my driving on the way there. :) I seriously felt like a criminal, as I was racing to get there. The thought of it was actually worse than what it turned out to be. I had the images from "Dangerous Journey" in my mind...ya know the part where Christian and Faithful are standing before the angry Judge in an even angrier courtroom. Yeah, the though of it was more humiliating than actually just simply showing the Judge that I had insurance. (thankfully I didn't have to plead guilty to anything--that's what I was dreading) The Judge seemed nice to me, and just reminded me to carry the card in the vehicle. Easy enough.

As I was driving home, I was thinking that it was a lot of drama just for an insurance card! Goodness! Whew! It was over!

All in all, I haven't gotten a thing done today, or at least it doesn't feel like it, since the usual didn't get completed. My kids kept started having meltdowns as soon as I arrived to pick them up from my Mom's. Samuel didn't want to leave my Mom's, William wanted a lollipop, Samuel realized that he left is new bouncy ball at Nana's, Madeline kept falling down and bonking, they were hungry and tired. Ahh!! After we ate lunch, I left the dishes and the house, and we went and read books. I decided not to get stressed out by them or the house. I knew the reason was that I left them in a hurry, the routine was blown...etc So everyone calmed down and got happy, when Mommy gave them undivided attention...what a novel thought! I layed Madeline down, and then the boys wanted to start the book, "Johnny Tremain"--it's a little above the preschool level, but they enjoyed the first chapter, so I think we'll continue. :) After they were down, I took a look at the house and the dishes, and did the mature thing, I took a nap too! I'm really not a napper, execpt when I'm pregnant, but today was just one of those days. (and, no, I'm not pregnant, for those of you who thought it was a hint:) So, here I am, writing about one of my crazy days, so I won't forget "the good ol' days" Samuel is getting ready to go w/ my Dad, Isaac, Eva, and Uncle Max to tap the sugar maples. He's pumped! William and Madeline are still snoozing. I am going to get some things done. That was my day...there ya have it! Ta ta!