Gloriously Fun Day!

So, because last night was sort of...er...challenging due to a very strong-willed 3-year-old who wanted to party at 2 a.m., we didn't make it to church. We love Living Water Church, and want to become members soon, and truly forge those friendships and establish that family in Christ, so it was kind of a bummer that we missed this morning. But, alas, this is the life we live and from day to day, one never knows if "plans" will unfold as "planned." Instead of worship, we went for a family drive. We traveled down a direction we've never taken before. It was neat to see new landscape, new developments, and new folks. We love adventure. We never stay put. We are out and about, and I love that about James---that he's got the same wander-lust! We stopped at a gas station so he could consult the map. I got out to check out this nude, mission-style furniture in a small shop. I poked my head in, saw not a soul....a lot of benches, some tables. I left. Heading down the sidewalk, back towards the minivan, where James studied our next move, with windows up, and outside sounds masked by a vocal Lil' Linc and opinionated Woo Loo, I heard a dreaded noise. An aggressive, ANGRY dog's bark! I turn my head back to see this shiny, black, rather LARGE-framed beast ferociously gaining on me!!!!!!!!!! I faced forward and continued on at the same pace. I thought to myself, "Okay. This is going to hurt," imagining his FANGS puncturing my fleshy limb (ha ha ha ha--you'd have to know my current weight struggle to laugh at this one!) It was just one of those occasions where you know, absolutely without a doubt, that something unpleasant is fixin' to happen, and there aint a durn thang you can do about it! Well! THANK THE LORD his master, a gal about my age, came a racin' after that monster! "STOP BARLKEY!!!!!!!!!" I grasped my heart, hoping and praying that this'd do the trick to stop this canine from punishing me, and oh my goodness. The dog turned towards his owner. She said to me, very sympathetically, "He wanted to say, 'Hi!'" I smiled weakly and made it, briskly, back to James, who had not heard so much as a puppy whine. He unrolled his window. I literally supported all of me on the door frame, and nearly collapsed. My legs felt like jell-o. ACTUALLY, they felt EXACTLY the way my entire body had felt when they pumped morphine into me while hospitalized with pylonephritis! I was "weak in the knees." As an adult, I didn't really know what fear felt like any more. I mean, when was the last time I felt truly endangered?! Well, all, I felt it today. And I have to say, I am relieved that that man's best friend did not have his way with me! It took me quite a long time to recover. I feel exhausted from that teensy moment in time. Seriously. Thank you, God, for sparing me! After this, we went on to have a super fun excursion. Tons to see and do! More later!