If you can't say something nice...

...blog about it.

Today I got in trouble. For being a crappy mom. Yepp, the occifers came to get me. I parked my car in the city hall parking right next to the cop shop. It was cold, so I left it running with the kids in the backseat, (GraceAnne was feeding Violet and both were happy), and locked the doors. I had to run across the street (25 ft) to drop off a hostess packet to someone who works down there. I knocked on the door, but the shop wasn't open, so I came back to the car. As I was getting into the car I heard the girl hollar to me, so I went back to give her the packet. She asked me a couple questions, (right inside the door of her shop...I could see the car and the kids the whole time), and I told her to hold on while I got her some more catalogs and moved the car, (didn't wanna get a ticket), and got the kids. When I got back across the street, (all this took no more than 45 seconds), a guy with a bandaged hand was yelling from the stairs. I said, "I know, I'm moving it right now, I'm sorry." He came over and tried to get into my car! I freaked, but figured we were in front of the police station in broad daylight, what could happen? I unrolled the window a hair so he could talk to me. He said, "I work for the police department, do you have a license on you?" I said yes and thought, "here we go...a parking ticket." He said, "you're going to have to step out of the vehicle." For parking in the wrong spot for 2 minutes?!? So I got out and he asked me what I was doing. I told him dropping something off, realized she had more questions and was moving the car, getting the kids and going back in. He asked how old the kids were and I realized this was about THEM and not my parking. I told him 9 months and almost 5. He just clucked at me. He said there was a patrol cop on the way and I could go do what I needed to do, but to leave the kids and the car there. OVER MY DEAD BODY am I leaving my kids here with some strange man, officer or not! So I stayed and he said nothing else to me. While we were waiting the kids were getting antsy, so I opened the back door and was talking to them. When the other officer got there, (how long does it really take? This town has all of 17,000 people and we were RIGHT in front of the station...give me a break!), she gets out of her car and the man says to her, "this woman left her 9 month old and 4 year old in the car alone. Just thought you'd be interested in that." To which she replied, "OH! I am VERY interested." The man drove away in his big, stinky diesel truck and the woman started taking down my information. The first thing she said to me was "did you know it's illegal to leave your children in a car by themselves?" I said, "I was unaware it was illegal to leave your children in a LOCKED car when you can SEE them and you're only gone for a few seconds." She said, "well, it is." At this point I have to get the kids out because she's taking forever and they're getting mad. So I'm now on the sidewalk holding Vi and GraceAnne jumping around. She ended up getting back in the car, (not in her carseat), cuz she was cold and she was jumping around in there like a fool and not listening to me which was just FANTASTIC for my nerves. The woman came to me with a little electronic dealy-bob and told me to sign it. I asked her what it was, because I KNOW I don't have to sign anything without being told what it is. She said, "No, you need to just sign this now, I'll explain in a minute." My bullsh*t meter was beeping, but I was about to blow a fuse so I signed it. She gave me the citation for 1. abandoning my children in a vehicle and 2. having said vehicle running. She told me to call the number on the citation for directions on what to do.

Can we say PISSED? Can we say HORRIFIED? Can we say EMBARRASSED beyond all belief? I spent a lot of time crying today and I'm left just pretty ticked off. I have to call tomorrow and find out what they want me to do. My very sincere prayer is that they don't have CPS come investigate us. They won't find anything but Lord knows what they'd say about us all living in the guest house. I have no idea what the dollar amount attached to this will be, I'm almost scared to find out, but if I only have to pay a fine and never hear another word, I'll be happy.

I hate these trash stories. It makes me feel trashy. Yes, I did wrong...but does anyone care that I was WATCHING them the whole time? It's not like I went grocery shopping and left them sitting in the car, (which I've seen around here!). It's also not as if I were gone all day. Do I need to take them out when I pre-pay for gas now? It's so very ridiculous. Things seem to get better and better around here.

Praise God for our health and for each other. Praise God that all things will work out in the end, because they sure aren't working out right now. Praise God because otherwise I might just think to hate Him for half a minute and I know that's just the devil working on me cuz I'm under stress. Praise God because I am not getting this onslaught of crap because I "deserve" it, but just because I live in this stupid, fallen world and someday it'll be better. Praise God because He still Blesses me, even when I refuse to see it. *sigh*