Out of Her Hands

Yesterday I finally got my medication straightened out, and today I'm starting to feel more like myself again. Two weeks ago, I called the doctor for a refill on my prescription, but when I picked it up a few days later, discovered that my other medication had been refilled instead. I have two pain meds with almost exactly the same name. I called the office the following Monday for it to be fixed, but the doctor was on vacation all week. Then last week, it seemed that no one at the office understood the problem, and it turned out, they didn't even know which meds I was on anymore. It turns out the mistake was the pharmacy's, and now it's all good, but for awhile there I was miserable.

Today I volunteered at Mia's class. I've been doing that for three weeks, and I've signed on to do another four. I work with a group of four kids at a time playing alphabet games. It's a great opportunity for me to get to know her classmates, and I've had so much fun doing it. I finally got to work with Mia today, and it was neat to see how smart she really is. I've seen a lot of different levels of capability in the last few weeks, and Mia is definitely near the top of her class. Some kids struggle to find each letter, but they are almost all enthusiastic and want so much to please. But it's a cool thing to see your child in her school environment and observe parts of her personality that you might not normally see. The last exercise the kids do with me has them placing foam letters on a laminated sheet matching them up. Most kids pick up a random letter and then search for it on the sheet twisting and turning it around until it fits. Mia tackled the problem in a way I haven't seen any of the other children do yet. She searched through the letters until she found the A, then the B, and went through the entire alphabet that way. Even when she found another letter and knew right where it went, she put it back down and continued working her way through sequentially. I'm curious what exactly that says about her personality. Any ideas?

Out of Her Hands by Megan DiMaria is the excellent second book in the Linda Revere series. Linda successfully spiced up her marriage in the first book, Searching for Spice, and now the story jumps ahead two years. Eldest son Nick is getting ready to graduate from college, and daughter Emma from high school. Linda is preparing for empty nest syndrome and looking forward to time with hubby Jerry. But when Nick brings home his new girlfriend, she's not exactly what Linda hoped and prayed for, and she's not quite sure how to react. I love Linda Revere, she reminds me so much of me! She's happy as long as she has a bit of control over everything in her life and she knows what will happen next. That's when God likes to laugh at us most, and He most certainly makes Linda stretch and grow as she comes to accept that she can't control everything, or even most things. DiMaria has a way of describing the every day things of life that perfectly capture the moment. When Jerry rolls over in bed, and Linda tugs the comforter back to her side, I had to laugh out loud at how precisely the marriage bed is portrayed. Linda and Jerry have a terrific loving relationship full of spice and understanding. It's the kind of marriage we all hope to have after 25 years together. Linda Revere is like a dear friend, and I hope that DiMaria continues this series for years to come!

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