Kill her with Kindness

I made muffins.

Not just any muffins.  From scratch, whole wheat, apple muffins.  I hand delivered these to the self-appointed "handicapped-parking-space-police-woman."

I know, I know.  What happened to the NJ Housewife?

Well, the irony is that my new best friend is from New Jersey.  That really is all I needed to know, and I would have not had to think about the crazy parking lot incident for the majority of my evening.

I guess a good night's sleep is really a dose of perspective.  I had an arsenal of one-liners prepared for my next chat with this lady.  I actually considered borrowing my friend's stolen handicapped sticker and having it gleaming on my car window, parked in the handicapped spot at swim today.  I still laugh at that image!  I woke up today and thought muffins.  Kill her with kindness.  Forget the fight.

I grabbed these two beauties, chopped, mixed, baked.  I have to admit that by the time I packaged these up, I could send a little kindness with them.  A little kindness for this lady who must have had something pretty terrible going on in her life to take it out on the frazzled mom of three just trying to get her kid's swimsuit size right.

I thought it would take a lot more nerve to go talk to her today.  I anticipated my heart pounding so loudly that I would stutter over my words and sound as crazy as she did yesterday.  But, it wasn't that bad at all.  And really, it couldn't get worse than yesterday, so what was I afraid of?  I don't remember how I started the conversation, but I saw a hard line across her face as I started speaking, so I quickly whipped out the muffins, and things softened from there.

Some 45 minutes later, we had hugged, gotten all the family info, discussed school politics, the economy, and her health struggles.  She helped Abbey with a skinned knee, picked up Layne's toy 5 dozen times, and shook hands with Landen.  We ended with her asking me to teach her daughter piano!  I might even consider that.

As we walked out of the pool area, she was having words with another gal who hadn't gotten her email, and I was telling Abbey her knee was fine and she needed to quit whining.
So she's a little short with people?!  So, I'm extremely unsympathetic?!
Hey...we've all got a little Jersey in us.