God works in mysterious ways!

Nothing makes you more thankful for your children than spending an evening with someone else's children. Tonight was our 8 year-old's first pee-wee football banquet. The doors opened at 5:30, but the banquet began at 6. We arrived at 6 PM with our family of four and could not find a seat in the whole place! Finally, after searching desperately for four seats together, we managed to squeeze in at the far table all in a row- not very conducive to family conversation. We aren't very familiar with many of the families involved in the league as it is in another town close by. Had we been familiar with them, we never would have sat where we did!

God works in mysterious ways. He has a way of sending you a message without actual words. He's big on demonstration and teaching by example.

Our 'table mates' across from us consisted of 3 heathens- complete with mullets and kool-aid mustaches- and their parents. I'm not sure if any of the boys had actually even played football let alone been off their leashes in a good while. We'll lovingly call them Hairy, Burly and Schmo.

The evening began with Hairy scratching up the plastic tablecloth to make patterns while pulling it back and forth. My kids stared in amazement and kept glancing at the boys' parents waiting for them to correct him. They didn't even notice. Then, Burly grabbed the little table decoration consisting of a juice glass filled with blue gel and drink umbrellas (luau theme). Burly proceeds to play with the gel and started stabbing the little pieces of it with the drink umbrellas while Hairy continued to yank the tablecloth. Still no reaction from Mom or Dad. Schmo decided to join the fun by climbing all over the other two and under the table.

Mom got up and took off towards the door. I was hoping she was going to the car for the harnesses, but to no avail. She had simply decided that the little monsters... I mean darlings... needed some Powerade drinks to boost their obviously lackluster energy levels. More tablecloth tugging and drink umbrella stabbing. Larry, Burly adn Schmo began growling, gnashing teeth and screeching.

Then, Mom suggested that since it was taking so long for our table to get dismissed (incidentally, we waited an hour just to get in line for food) and since we were so luckily sitting near the dessert table, that her boys should go get a cookie or ten to hold them over. That really got things going! They proceeded to tear up the plastic leis they got as they walked in and used them to choke each other and lasso drink bottles and knock them over. I was just waiting for a lid to go flying off and coat everyone of us with red Powerade. The boys literally began bouncing all over the room and, by the time we ate, had enough grime on their hands to contaminate every food at the buffet right before we got there.

Watching them eat was a completely different experience. One I hope not to repeat either in real life, or in my blog. BLECH!!!

My sons were so shocked by how these boys were allowed to act. They kept looking at us in horror and looking at the heathens' parents in disbelief.

We told our boys on the way home that we am so proud of the way they acted. They sat like little angels and waited patiently for an hour till we got in line for our cold chicken and what was left of the buffet. I actually was surprised that my boys sat so good for that long with such stimulation right in front of them. That's a hard thing for a kid to do.

Now I need a Motrin and a nap!