BOYS + MUD= MESS

MUD~ It's dirty, it's wet, it makes a HUGE mess, it's DIRTY...hmmmmmm I guess I already said it's DIRTY. The biggest thing I've noticed about mud is the ability it has to draw my children in. It's like it's calling their name.

There is this one place in our yard that turns into a small pond when it rains. The dogs LOVE it, the kids LOVE it, but me...I DESPISE it! I KNOW it's fun and irresistable but my floors and my kids clothes take a beating from all the mud.

Even my daughter loves to play in mud. Of course she wants to wash her hands and take a bath soon after the fun wears off, but still, she will go straight for it everytime she goes outside. The toys are ignored. No one pays attention to the playhouse, the bikes sit idle and the basketball and football lay still from the lack of play. But the MUD...well that is another story.

You can paint with mud, bake pies with mud, have a mud fight, make war paint and any number of other clever things can be done with MUD. It really has great value for all the FREE entertainment it provides.

As my boys play in the mud, getting dirty and having fun, I am very tempted to LOVE the mud. They are exploring, learning things about their surroundings, using their vast imaginations to be ANYTHING they want to be...and they are having FUN! There is something so wonderful about watching children play and have fun. Kids these days grow up way too fast and we wonder where all the time has gone.

I have decided to worry less about the messes and clutter in my life because soon, I will have only my own messes to clean. The house will be quiet and I will miss the sound of running feet and the loud squeals of laughter.

So for today, I will LOVE MUD! I'm not saying I'll play in it...but I won't mind at all when my children do. And I think I'll even smile a little as I clean up the mess it makes.

Wednesday Nights

I'm not sure what it is about Wednesday nights after church that make my children turn into WILD ANIMALS!!!
They run around, hide, laugh, giggle and do EVERYTHING but go to SLEEP! What's a mom to do? And of course they have to go to the bathroom 3 times EACH. It is always so nice when the soothing music finally kicks in and they begin to settle down. That's when I FINALLY get a little peace.
As any SAHM knows, peace is a RARE and beautiful thing:) I love being home with my children and would not change it for anything. Between all the bottoms and noses I wipe, and the spills I continually clean, the laundry I wash and the toys I pick up...mixed in I get to see them learn, I am the recipient of many spontaneous hugs and I get to see them play together, love each other, and care for each other. Of course that takes place between all the fighting, but still, it's THERE.
And for all of that, I wouldn't want to be doing anything else. EVEN on a Wednesday night.