Grace, Coordination, and all those other myths

So, I got a little overexcited to go for a walk the other day, Monday, with my niece, her son, my sister, and my kids. We were rounding up the troops to go- changing out of swimsuits, locating strollers, up righting bikes, tying laces. And I went running back upstairs for something, came flying back downstairs in far too much a hurry... and proceeded to slide on a blanket that was left on the steps and catapult myself right over the baby gate at the bottom of the steps. (I had a dream about running hurdles last night, something I've never done in real life, and I wonder now if there could be some correlation here?!)

Anyways, I've never been known for my gracefulness. Did I ever mention I once ran right into a tree with thorns and got a thorn stuck right in the middle of my forehead? Or how once when I was fishing I threw the whole rod in the water? Or how about the time I chipped my tooth on a necklace?

So, back to me flying through mid-air over the gate. As you can well imagine it did not end in a graceful leap in which I landed on two feet, straightened my shirt, blinked, and said, "Phew. That was close." Nah, right in character with me, it was more like a thrashing pile of arms and legs with an awfully loud crackling noise in my ankle that instantly made me feel like fainting. Turns out it wasn't broken or anything- just sprained, to my surprise- but I spent the better part of Monday evening and Tuesday on the couch with an ice pack draped over my ankle and the fan blasting in my face.

Ah, fun. At least it's not broken. At least I'm walking a little less awkwardly this morning. I keep thinking maybe it will teach me to slow down, but I'm not convinced. I think when you're accident-prone it's just they way you'll always be. No matter how much you 'grow up'. And, the thing is, I look at my kids and I think... Oh, Jack... You got it coming. I see so much of my clumsy self in him that it makes me cringe to think of how many bangs and bumps he might encounter over his life. When you don't have grace, you just can't help it and let's just say his coordination (uh, lack of) mirrors mine in so many ways.

Anyways, looks like the sun is going to shine today. #3 is already back for a nap because she obviously woke up too early and could do nothing but complain from the time I lifted her out of her crib till the time I set her back in. #1 and #2 are happily coloring on the floor- content with some quiet time before the start of another warm, sunny, busy summer day.

Enjoy your Wednesday!