I had a sudden inspiration to line up our offspring one evening so I could send a photo to the faraway grandparents.
And there you have it. What I do with myself all day. Those two short ones at the end? They have a conspiracy going. Something like “let’s keep Mama guessing and hopping, then let’s hug her and pretend we didn’t do anything at all”.
Yeah, you might not surmise it, but that blond cherub… is a piece of work! The thing is, she is so incredibly resourceful. I have to remember that she didn’t mean to spill that Lake Erie sized puddle of milk on the kitchen floor. She was just getting a drink while her mama was out at the clothes line. She is a survivor, a self sufficient and helpful little thing, descended, no doubt, from some hunter/gatherer tribe. She is skilled at finding my gum stash, at going potty all BY HERSELF, and she KNOWS why she is wearing those striped socks with her flip-flops, thankyouverymuch. The evening that I discovered her decorating my Bible with a red marker, I remembered to breathe deeply and look at the lion she had drawn and painstakingly cut out for me that very day. Such creativity! 
The very shortest one is squishy and fun and needy, especially when we are doing school. That is why I sit on the older children while she is napping. I will never understand why their loudest arguments have to occur right outside the nursery door. Asking, “What were you thinking?” is pointless, since they are always sorry, but they weren’t thinking.
This morning I finished a book by Mary Beth Chapman, titled Choosing to See. It is the story of their family walking through the heartbreak of losing a child in an accident. I was challenged to really make my days with my little guys count, to invest, yes, really pour myself into this journey of mothering.
It is easy to feel like I have too much to do, there is never enough time, the house will never be clean, I will be cooking until the day I die, etc. etc. I ask myself, where am I going? That goal of an orderly house without paper snibbles on the floor… is it really a worthy goal? What am I reaching for anyway? Is it my own convenience? Sanity? Quietness? I pray that I can keep my heart focused on eternity and on making “fat souls” as Rachel Jankovic describes it in her book “Loving the Little Years”.
Okay, math period is now over and I am sure the baby will be waking up any minute. So long!
wocket in my pocket 
Oh my goodness Dorcas! Those blond curls, I would love to do a photo shoot with your blond and my dark one! She looks so plump and capable. Do you ever squeeze that arm and just snicker with delight? I do mine, Sometimes when I take Lollipop to the bathroom, she sees a corner of the rug tucked under. She stops, bends over, and smooths it before we can commence to the bathroom. 🙂 I loved this mornings blog entry. I don’t feel alone anymore. I feel like maybe I am a normal Mom with normal struggles, and normal children. My children are so very good and sweet until they stop thinking. Which is way too often. And paper snibbles. I almost burst into tears when I read paper snibbles. Now granted I am postpartum about 3 weeks, so my ebbing hormones probably are to blame, but honestly, my house is over run with paper snibbles. We have to buy paper in in the big big packs, because of all the drawing, cutting, coloring, and pasting. I did try to save paper one time and our walls and furniture took a violent downhill turn. So thankyou for cheering up my nursing baby time so much. I laughed and yes, almost cried at the paper snibbles, And now I shall stride forth and Mom to the best of my flawed abilities.
I laughed and laughed at your comment. Sometimes i nearly cry when the blond curls are finally napping. I love her so much, and she is so busy and quick and adorable and exasperating that I just stand and marvel at my cherub holding still. Paper… I only just mentioned paper in passing because I can’t really go there. We call it snibble city after Greg has been creating… Sounds like you’re acquainted with snibble city. No indeed, you are not the only one.
Have a great day!
Oh, Dorcas, I LOVE the picture! they are growing way too fast!! I needed this post AGAIN, in the middle of canning grape juice and watching my nice clean floors, that my hubby so graciously washed up for me last night after a houseful of 16 children,(Jesse P’s were here in case you are wondering where all the children came from!:) watermelon and cake crumbs, again become sticky and crumby and oodles of just kiddo stuff, scattered hither and yon! Someday I will look back fondly on this time of my life, so why not enjoy every moment now and make every moment a sweet memory for my children too!! forget the snibbles and cake crumbs and love them to pieces!!Thanks for the reminder!!