I spent far too much time taking photos of my spiderwort plants after a recent rainstorm.
There were beautiful, shimmering raindrops caught in the petals like fairy jewels
and on the buds
and this little spider was peeking out of one of the leaves
and this tiny bee was busy collecting pollen
On Thursday morning, my spoiled-rotten little five-year-old was sassing me. It was one of those moments where you look at your kid and wonder, what did I do wrong? Obviously something or my child wouldn't be talking to me like that.
Then I read this blog post from The Legacy of Home, a great blog I read regularly.
It's one of those blogs that makes you -- or at least me -- want to be better at my job as a mom, a homemaker, a wife. I'm sure there are a lot of things the author, Mrs. White, doesn't share, but the things she does share really make me think, like this particular post.
This is the kind of mom I want to be. One who has it all under control, and uses every moment of the day to do something productive. Everything is a teaching moment. And as a result, the kids learn a lot of great life skills.
I don't know. Something in me tells me this woman must have moments -- or must have had moments when her kids were younger -- when her house was an absolute wreck. When she lost it and screamed at her kids. When her kids talked back and told her they hated her.
Or maybe not. Maybe she's as perfect as she sounds.
Frankly, I'll never know, because it's the internet and you only get to see as much as people choose to show you.
But anyway, her posts are great and they do inspire me want to be better at my job, and my life.
Check out The Legacy of Home and see for yourself.
Logan found out I had an electric guitar stored away and begged me to get it out, so I did.
He proceeded to serenade me. What a cutie pie.
Sometimes kids can be so darn charming.
I was doing laundry the other day and a certain little imp dove headfirst into the clothing I was pulling out of the dryer.
I continued to pile the laundry on top of that little imp, and then, when I was done, I waited.
I didn't have to wait long before this sweet little face popped up out of the basket.
I live for those smiles!
A while back, my friend Marcia posted something on her blog that I thought was a really good point. I guess I've been kind of turning it over in my head since then, and I sat down to write my newspaper column the other night, and the following is what came out:
Do you ever wake up, sometimes way too early, and have trouble getting back to sleep because you’ve got a running list in your head of all the things you have to do?
I do. I think most of us deal with this mental noise a lot of the time. We’re busy, overworked people.
As a stay-at-home mom, my list generally includes things like the following: I have to get up in an hour and go to the gym. I have to fold and put away the clean laundry and wash a couple more loads. I have to empty the dishwasher and reload it, run it and empty it again. I have to figure out what’s for dinner. I have to make sure Logan’s ready for tee ball at five. And so on.
There are a lot of “have-tos” in there, and sometimes they can get me down. It seems like I get so overloaded with all those things to do, many which are never, ever done. (Laundry and dishes, anyone?)
I will admit that this to-do list gets me down sometimes. I get to feeling so overwhelmed that I get cranky. There is just too much to do, and I can’t seem to get it all done.
But I have discovered that it isn’t QUITE as bad if I get myself into the right mindset about things.
My daily tasks aren’t just “have-tos.” They’re “GET-tos.”
I don’t HAVE to drag myself out of bed at 5 a.m. to work out. No one is making me. I do it because I know in the end that it is good for me, and it’s most convenient to do it before the boys get up rather than waiting until the end of the day when I’m completely blasted and just want to go to bed.
Plus, there are an awful lot of people out there who are dealing with physical issues that prevent them from exercising like I do. Those people would LOVE to have the ability to get up at 5 a.m. and step on the stair climber machine for a half hour. I was one of those people, twice, when I was on bed rest for both my kids. I would have given anything to be able to get up and go to the gym rather than lying there trying to keep my blood pressure down.
When I look at it that way, it’s a little easier to get out of bed and get moving. Hey! I get to go to the gym today! Lucky me! I’m alive and well!
And what about dinner, laundry and dishes? Those annoying daily jobs that never end?
You know what I’m going to say, right?
I am so fortunate to have plenty of food, adequate clothing, and a terrific husband and children to cook for. I am lucky to have all those tiny little (and big) T-shirts to fold and put away. It’s awesome that I am able to cook good meals for my family and then clean up after them.
There are a lot of people out there who would give just about anything for a spouse like mine. Even if his gym laundry practically crawls away on it own.
There are a lot of people out there who can’t have kids of their own, or who have lost a child. They would give just about anything to be able to clean up one of the amazing messes my kids make at just about every meal. Mopping up smashed, flung food and wiping sticky faces and hands would to them be a small piece of heaven.
I am so, so lucky for these, the things I GET to do on a daily basis.
It’s so easy to let the day-to-day business of life get us down. Tasks mount into daunting lists, cluttered countertops mock us, little boys spill, tip over and dump out everything they come across.
But a new attitude can help us look at things in a different light.
These tasks aren’t the things that get in the way of life.
These tasks ARE life. And those of us who get to live it should be grateful for the opportunities we have.
So, what do you get to do today?
Jordan was feeling a lot better yesterday, and had his first creamsicle (my best friend drove all the way over here to bring me a box of them since I mentioned that I kind of wanted one!)
What a mess!
But he loved it.
The past 4 days have been really rough. Jordan got some sort of cootie. (Throat/ear thing, I guess. Pediatrician gave him an antibiotic). He's had a pretty constant temp around 104 and has been super super crabby and miserable. It killed me that I couldn't make him feel better.
There's been lots of TV watching (when he would sit still for it)
and lots of popsicles (AKA sticky mess from Hell!)
But today, my 34th birthday, he woke up bellowing "MOM!" in his crib and he is feeling better. His temp was only 99. I am so thrilled!
What a great gift!
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