AUGUST 2023

First Annual M&M Day

By Stacee Helton

August 12, 2023

July is always a busy month around here, and definitely explains the lapse in time, since last I wrote. The month can be summed up in two words: church camp. A whole month of them, in fact! My husband helps out for at least one week, each year. (Except that one year, when he did three weeks in a row… but I think he’s since blocked it from his memory). Our own kids both attended this camp as campers and have helped as counselors. Over the years, at least one of us has also helped to lead worship, helped with technical support, worked in the kitchen, taken photos, or has been the speaker for the week. It’s always an exciting and important week for our church kids. While my daughter and I enjoy it, it’s not an exaggeration to say that my husband and my son literally eat it up. They absolutely love it, even in the July heat. 

I actually did something for myself at the end of July while the guys were away at camp, and I’ve decided to call it my first annual “M&M Day”. I took a personal day and started it with a mammogram, and then I went for a massage (and also a mocha and a trip to Hobby Lobby). I figured that I could trick my brain into maybe enjoying the day, by following up the least fun activity with a much more pleasant one… and it absolutely worked! I’m already looking forward to next year!  

I’ve only ever had a total of 4 massages, so you can see that scheduling one of these wonderful treats for myself is rare. My husband was kind enough to give me a gift certificate for one, this last Christmas (just as he had given me two years before). So my last massage was a year and a half ago, and before that, it had been 5 long years since my last one! For a gal who has a hard time doing something for herself, and an even harder time relaxing, that one hour session they call a “Stress Fix” is quite heavenly. It includes essential oils, relaxing music, and heated blankets (which, honestly… came very close to throwing me into a hot flash, and I didn’t even care!). My favorite part this time was actually the hand massage, but every single second of my hour was pushing away a year’s worth of tension, and it was wonderful. Yes… I do believe I will make M&M Day an annual thing, and I encourage you ladies to do it, too! 

And that brings us to today. I am currently nursing a sore tooth and looking forward to a root canal next week. This will be my second one in the last few years, as I’ve reached that time in life where my “little girl fillings” are beginning to fail. I guess that can happen, as we inch closer and closer to that half a century mark! But a root canal isn’t the only appointment I have next week. As is becoming my new way of handling an unpleasant appointment, my other one will be a little more fun. I have an overdue appointment to cover up the “glitter” in my hair. (Ha! I guess I’ll be taking care of two different types of ROOTS next week). So many topics today that just prove I’m getting older. And yes… it does stink. But, I’m thankful for the opportunity, and will keep on smiling!  (Even if it hurts a bit, at the moment). Now, go plan your own M&M Day, or an R&R Day, if you need to… and take care!