Today, something happened to me. Either having four kids is starting to grow on me, or someone slipped me some good drugs (in which case I want to know what it was so I can put in an order)
Today, nothing could discourage me. I was just grateful and happy all day long.
Things started out pretty interestingly:
When I started the shower and went off in search of a towel (which I did not find, because every towel in my entire life was in the wash) Frank, the dog, decided it would be fun to jump in and get soaking wet - then, about five minutes before we had to leave for VBS, Jada asked me if I would like her to take a shower before she got dressed and did her hair (I was under the impression she was ready for the car) - and while I was doing a quick change of Leo's last minute poop diaper (20 minutes after we should have left) he took the new outfit I had selected for him to wear and wiped it on his parts, right through the poop.
But instead of these surmounting road blocks causing me to lose my love for life, I had an unusually peaceful calming sensation wash over me at every obstacle. All I could do was smile. I kept finding reassurance in how precious all these kids are. I was determined to cherish our moments whether we were on time, drenched, poopy, dressed, or not, and I was certain that we were going to enjoy our drive to the church even if we got there late for chapel...
I can only imagine such a perspective came from One Place. Thank You, God. :)
I also noticed today that I am so much less concerned with shoveling out and organizing the kind of "clutter" that is making its way around the perimeter of every room in my once minimalistic home.
Sure there are drying bottles, rings, and nipples on my window sill - but I know right where they are, ready and waiting for me at the drop of a hat (which is the time frame in which I generally need most things these days).
And yes, there has been a dueling set of playmobile vikings, horses and weapons on the top counter of my kitchen island for over a week - but every kid in my house, including the baby, plays with them right there every single day (usually while I'm cooking something and they are sharing their stories with me).
I know I would have never had a continuous stream of piled art projects in the works, activity books, buckets of colors, scissors, glue, etc... laying out on the dining room table, always - but putting these things away just means more monotonous back and forth, in and out, bustle and shuffle through the kitchen and laundry areas, into the craft room... all FOR WHAT?
There are books with little dog-earred pages stacked everywhere - but a summer full of reading kids makes my heart sing.
There's a Thomas the Train universe taking up the far left third of my living room -but I love seeking out a missing Leo only to find him sitting with his sister smack in the center of that train-land, reaching up with a content smile, the offering of a blue caboose, and the invitation to join in.
There are reusable diapers, disposables, and boxes of wipes around every corner - because you just never know when you'll need to pop a squat and change a butt. :)
The line of shoes on the bench in the entry way is endless, the front of my sparkling white kitchen cabinets are, well... not white anymore, and the fridge literally throws meals out at me when I open it now (kind of convenient I think).
And I've only taken account of my main floor here. I'm not even going into my upstairs or my downstairs...
no, I mean literally, I don't go to either floor.
They belong to the kids. They are filled with forts and demolished kingdoms, dominoes and connect four game pieces, clothes and all those MIA towels??? Yep! They too are scattered from one end to the other.
But these little areas are dear to the small people in my house. The only thing that upsets them is to disrupt those spaces where they meet with their imaginations to play and create until something else shiny catches their eye. :)
As messy, and busy, and at times chaotic as things can be - with the routines for everything, and the washing and straightening, planning and cooking, feeding and cleaning, diapering, and laundering, setting up and taking back down, taxing, and tucking in... I couldn't be happier.
I've been looking around all day just beaming from the inside out. Don't get me wrong, I will enjoy when we return back to our own, simpler, quieter, less chaotic reality in a month, but I can say with absolute certainly that I'm pretty in love with our life right now.
Who would have thought? :)
No comments:
Post a Comment