Heartbreak

2 Years, 39 Weeks.


This isn't how the season was supposed to end, was it?  We couldn't have lost to the Baltimore Ravens by a field goal in double overtime, could we?  I mean, we were the #1 seed in the AFC!  And we have Peyton Manning!  And we were playing at home!  Even the Mayans predicted our victory!

Are you kidding me right now?!

We were the clear favorites to WIN IT ALL!

Alas, it wasn't meant to be.

I felt as if I had just been dumped by a girlfriend, and I haven't had that feeling in almost 15 years, which is suffice to say, I felt real hurt and dejected after the game Saturday night.  I mean, I had spent the entire season passionately rooting for our team rebuilding around our newly acquired franchise quarterback, and showcasing some amazing heart to bring us just 3 wins away from becoming Superbowl champions!  Great, now who am I going to cheer on for the rest of the playoffs?  I'll be honest with you, I was a bit depressed and inconsolable for a couple days after Saturday night's shocking loss.

But then, I came to this conclusion:  We weren't supposed to win this year.  This year was about rebuilding.  They'll continue to work out the kinks during the off season. They'll draft some new and young talent.  They'll strengthen their defense.  And then they'll win.  Next year.

Next year.  I can hardly wait!

Let's see, what else might have happened this week...

Oh yeah, we were in a car accident.

Don't worry, we're all fine.  I'm surprised I didn't mention this at the beginning, but the stunning loss to the Ravens kinda caused a bit more pain than this fender bender.

We had just finished church on Sabbath and were heading out of the church parking lot, waiting for a clearing to get onto 436 when we were struck from behind.  A church member had rear ended us, and not a slight bump either.  It was a loud BANG, like maybe she had thought we were going and just stepped on the gas.  With that big of a jolt I thought for sure that the rear bumper was now sagging if not dangling on the ground.  Tangie checked up on the kids while I put the minivan in park and went outside to inspect the damage.  The lady that hit us looked stunned as she also came out of her car, telling me that her foot had slipped out of her heels and that she couldn't brake in time.  Another reason why I don't wear heels when I'm driving!  The bumper looked fine, with nary a dent or scratch on it.  But upon closer inspection we found that the rubber step on top was damaged and popped up, and the sides of the bumper closer to the back wheels were slightly protruding out of alignment.  The sherifs that usually direct traffic were parked near the Starbucks across the street and gave no sign or indication that they saw what happened nor did they care to come over, so I told the lady that we needed to turn around and head back into the church parking lot to exchange information and deal with the mishap.  Many other church members, some that we know, could only shake their heads to give empathy at our misfortune.

She was very apologetic, the lady, and especially so after I told her I had 3 young children inside the van with us.  I had my phone out ready to call the police for a police report so that we wouldn't have to deal with any insurance issues, but with such small damage and the fact that she was fellow SDA and church member, I wasn't sure if a call for the police was necessary.  Plus I was the kids were starving and calling the police would have taken up another hour or more.  You could see my dilemma.  What would Jesus do?  Okay, maybe not what He would do, but what would He like me to do?   So I asked her if she wanted her insurance to pay for the damage or if she wanted to pay out of pocket.  Her first response was insurance, so I explained to her that if her insurance was to pay then they would need an official police report for their records, which meant that I would have to call the police.  So she asked how much I thought it would cost out of pocket.  I told her that the damage was minimal and that we knew someone who could give us an honest estimate, but that it shouldn't be over $500.  She said okay, and explained that she was in a middle of a nasty divorce, that he was going to take her for everything she had, and that today was the first time in a long time that she had been to church.  Great.  I told her that I was glad she was able to attend church today, under the circumstances.  We exchanged contact information, told her that I would be in touch, and then we headed our separate ways.

On Monday afternoon I went to go see our guy at Courtesy Collision Center in Winter Garden.  He inspected the damage and the following day gave me a preliminary estimate on materials and labor:  $109.  He did mention on the report that if they found additional damage to the inner components of the bumper that the estimate would increase another $350, but the total would be less than $500.  Wow, that was a pretty close guesstimate on our part.  The lady and I had exchanged a couple of voicemails since then and I had included her in my email correspondence with the shop so she is in the loop as to what is going on.  She was very gracious and continued to be apologetic and thankful that everyone was okay;  I noticed some soreness on my neck Sunday and Monday but the whiplash has worn off.  We have the minivan scheduled to be worked on this coming Monday, so we'll let you know what happens.

Here was the rest of our week in pictures:

Squeaky clean triple action.

The girls and

the boys for dinner at a new sushi restaurant.

Kohl waits for the girls to finish up in the restroom at church.
This wait would allow us to be at the perfect spot and time to be rear ended when leaving!

Maddy sits with Mommy

while I have the other two.  Lunch at Sweet Tomatoes.

We watched cousin Preston get dedicated in California via webcast.

Mommy and Braelyn enjoy the sunshine Sabbath afternoon.

Braelyn and I celebrate a Broncos touchdown.
 This was to be followed by weeping and gnashing of teeth a couple of hours later.

Testing out some bean bag chairs for college.

Bringing home the goods from Old Time Pottery.

Lunch with Mommy at Tijuana Flats.

A quick trip to the playground after naps.

Flirting with death to install...

The new wall decoration!

A quick trip to Lowe's to buy something we needed.

We swung by the library to check out some bedtime story books.
Maddy shows Kohl where to go; I love their faces, especially Kohlden's, on the computer screen!

Kohl fascinated by Mommy reading the bedtime story.  Maddy, not so much.

Trying to keep warm in the walk in refrigerator at Costco!

Randoms:

Sported team colors on Saturday.

Maddy took some pictures at Sweet Tomatoes.   This is a two year old's point of view.

Quotes:

• I was giving the twins their lunch on Monday, and had just set down bowls of applesauce by their sandwiches:

          Maddy:  "What is that?"

          Kohl:  "Apple socks!"

• We were having a pizza supper at the Grodacks Thursday evening:

          Brae:  "Where's Duncan?"

          Me:  "He's at work."

          Kohl:  "With Mommy?"

          Hmmm.   Should I be concerned?

• We were driving to pick up Brae from school one day when Maddy started crying in the back of the van:

           Me:  "Maddy, what's the matter?"

           Maddy:  [crying]  "Kohldie hit me!"

           Me:  "Kohden!  We don't hit!  Tell Maddy you're sorry!"

           Kohl:  "I sorry Maddy."

           Me:  "Maddy, tell Kohlden  'Don't ever do it again!'"

           Maddy:  [to Kohlden] "Don't ever do it again!"

           Kohlden:  [to Maddy]  "I love you."

         
           Such a guy!

Quote of the week:

• We were buying some ornamental wall decorations at Old Time Pottery last Sunday, and I was at the checkout while Tangie was taking the kids back to the van.  There were two ladies at the register, the first one ringing up the items while the second one was wrapping and bagging them up.  When she hit total I spoke up to inquire what type of credit cards they took.  What I meant to say was, "What do you all take?"  Instead, this happened:

          Me:  "What do you all need?"

          Cashier 1:  "Excuse me?"

          Me:  [embarrassed]  "I'm sorry.  I meant, what do you all take?  As in credit
                                           cards."

          Cashier 1:  [laughing] "Oh, everything but American Express."

          Me:  [sheepish, looking at Cashier 2 and muttering] "What do you all need..."

          Cashier 2:  "Bananas.  Or whatever you have in your pants."

          Me:  [taken aback] "Hey now!"

          Cashier 2:  [speechless, very embarrassed, and beet red]

          Yup.  I still got it.

Sometimes, they are sweet to each other.  Sometimes.

Have a great weekend!