Sarah and I talked a lot this last week about how we spend our time. She is covered up right now with three little people who need her, on a moment-by-moment basis. To be fed, stay clean, not ingest horrible things, or escape out the front door and be halfway down the street before you can say lickedy-split. She has to work at finding brief moments in her day for the fun stuff. The stuff that keeps you sane and feeling like a girl.

I, on the other hand, should be at the point where I have less demands on me. However, I've come to realize I'm stupid. Seriously Stupid. The nest is empty except for one husband and two four-legged creatures. The four-leggeds don't count and the husband kept it together for the 11 days I was gone. He even filled my bird feeders and watered the flowers. Somehow I seriously never seem to have time for the things I really want to do. Sarah told me, "Mom, we do the things we really want to do. " As we drove to the airport for my flight she told me if she could have today, my first day back home, this is how she'd spend it:

#1 Stay in bed - however long it takes - til I wake up rested.
#2 Make a good breakfast.
#3 Load my new iPod with some music and head for the beautiful trail we have here that I rarely walk.
#4 Come home and shower, exfoliate, etc. etc.
#5 Do devotions.
#6 Make a good lunch, preferable a turkey sandwich with sprouts and avocado.
#7 Clean a little - emphasis on little.
#8 Figure out something for dinner.
#9 Spend the evening with my sweet husband. We haven't had a real conversation since May 4.
#10 Go back to bed and sleep in again.

She told me that would be, in her book, The Perfect Day, and she can't do it for another 20 years. I'd already made my list several days ago as I prepared to fly home. I'm a professional list maker. I give talks on making lists. My list included these things - call re haircut appt; go through bills, mail, etc.; make menus and grocery list; clean out fridge of anything scary; do the laundry; go in and schedule loan payment that is due 6/10; print out forms for household management;call re prescription; return book to library that is 2 weeks overdue; pay kid who cared for pets. That was my list - not a single, solitary fun, soul-restoring thing on it. As I said, my name is Bev, and I'm S.T.U.P.I.D.

Sometimes we learn from those we taught, or thought we did. I wish my daughter could spend her day this way. I'm confident when her time comes she won't need encouragement to do so. So I traded lists and I'm on #4. I'll be back here in a day or two, after my soul is restored. Then I'll clear anything scary out of the fridge.