the whole picture

Days like this are what I want to remember-

A sunny morning with a friend, a relaxing afternoon in with just my kids. I even got a work out in. The day seemed to last forever, yes. But, I didn’t care I was enjoying it. That is no lie. The rainy afternoon was lovely.  Keegan and Tate played for hours. With no fighting. It’s a God thing. Asher napped. I did crafts, and cleaned, and made a homemade pizza crust. I want to remember this.  The joy they found in making porcupines out of modeling clay and toothpicks. All 150 toothpicks. I want to remember the simplicity of it all.

 

I want to remember the endless hugs and kisses given freely by Ash. He faithfully by my side at the washer and dryer. Putting laundry in the dryer with his pudgy little hands, and don’t forget the dryer sheets, too. He is eager to help and finds such joy in throwing things away. Anyone eager to help pretty much has a special place in my heart.

 

Most days I find myself staring into my kids faces. Trying to take a mental snapshot of how they are in that very moment. How incredibly precious they were at this stage and always will be.

 

I want to remember that there were times I felt chill. Chill is a good place. Today wasn’t perfect and I was okay with that  I let them be kids and that included letting Asher do “water play” in the house. It was messy and I had to put an end to it eventually, but he was in heaven. Together we picked up 17 artificial limes I had thrown on the floor for him to play with. We counted them and picked the up. He laughed as he tried to hold three at one time, their slippery, plastic surface, sliding out of his grip. I must remember all the good times we had in these little years.

 

We all played Legos (which I won’t say if I enjoyed or not), but I did it for them, because I can’t get this time back. Then we all did somersaults in the bonus room. Not a day this week has passed that I didn’t contemplate the fact Keegan is turning eight soon. How short that time has been. And in that same length of time he will be sixteen. I know my time is short to mentor me kids, and teach them about God. I thank God for blogs that encourage and RL friends that like iron sharpening iron , spur each other on. I love that I have people in my life to bounce ideas off of and share with.

 

I want to remember days like this, because honestly, today is not like that day, not like it at all. Not getting enough sleep is no good. I feel a weight. Doing all the things a mom does feels hard. Making lunch is a chore.

 

I want to remember all these good little things and days when my babies are small, because sometimes I feel  I might look back and remember nothing but a big blur, mixed with stress and chaos. And there is and was too much good for that to be the whole picture.