It has been six years since I have had a job. I’ve subbed and worked part-time for a while
in Houston, but this is the first time I’ve had a real, full-time job since
becoming a mother. To be honest, it has
been a struggle of epic proportions. My
husband, bless his heart, is a great father, one of the best I’ve ever known,
but he is a terrible cleaner. In fact,
he is messier than all three kids combined (and that’s bad because the kids are
TORNADOS). I come home to a house that
is littered in clothes and cups (I live in cup-hell, but that’s a blog for
another day) and smells like poop because someone wasn’t watching our precious
little puppy or EVEN WORSE, said husband was watching our precious puppy and
can point out where the poop is, but waited for me to come around to pick it up
and Clorox the floor. Did I mention that
dinner and homework haven’t been started either?? FUN TIMES IN THE SKINNER
HOUSE!!
So needless to say, I’ve been very angry lately. Angry at anyone and everyone because I
literally, physically, figuratively, emotionally, mentally and another other
–ally(s) that you can imagine, cannot do it all anymore. But, all that being said, my home life is not
a job I can quit or walk out on for any length of time (because, could you
IMAGINE what it would look like when I came back?).
I no longer have time to shop anymore, goodbye forever
Target, Walmart and Walgreens. So, Chloe
needs face wash and razors, Bryan is out of bar soap and the boys need vitamins
and toothpaste. What to do? I got on Walgreens.com and made an order with
two-day shipping. I told the boys that I
ordered them new toothpaste and they asked what kind. It was Avengers, no big deal, I just picked
it because they like Avengers and it was the first thing that popped up when I
searched. Both days that it took for the package to arrive, they asked and
waited for their Avenger toothpaste. My
boys acted like they were waiting for Christmas morning. Well, Santa (a.k.a. the UPS guy) arrived with
the Walgreens package. They opened it
like it was a present and ran upstairs to brush their teeth. Two minutes later they came downstairs saving
the puppy from villains like Captain America and picking things up with their
really strong muscles like the Hulk. The
long-awaited toothpaste had given them Avenger super-hero powers. How about that? Watching them run around, I
started thinking about my devotional I read that morning. Be thankful in all things and in all
circumstances, not to be universally thankful, but be specific. Specifically, I am thankful for these little
children that still believe in magic.
That the magic of super hero toothpaste will give them special
powers. Thankful that they can run and
play and that they are healthy. Thankful
for their joyful spirit and the little things that they love. Thankful that although I feel like we are
surrounded by chaos, they don’t feel it.
Their life is carefree and fun, which is exactly what I want for my five
and six-year-old boys.
So, this weekend, I got a new outlook on my life. Work has made chaos, yes. But work is a BLESSING and I truly am
THANKFUL for my job and the things that it will provide for us! So, I am on a
path to organizing my chaos. We started this weekend, cleaning. I gave the boys jobs and Bryan jobs and they
actually did help. Chloe, my biggest
helper of all was sick, so she got some much needed rest (she is the least of
my messers anyway). We are a long way
from “getting it all together,” but we are working on it as a family.
Our weekend was busy with a color run and birthday parties,
but the kids had a blast. Not sure they
ever played so hard in one weekend.
Bryan was going to take the boys to a birthday party yesterday so I
could grocery shop and clean, but at the last minute, I decided to go. It was Colt’s first time to skate and he was
SO excited. He looked like a newborn
giraffe (there is absolutely no other explanation) around that skating rink and
he fell about 200 times, but he never would leave the rink for 3 hours until
Bryan picked him up and took him out.
When you squeezed his hair, sweat dripped down his face. As he was falling asleep last night, he said,
“Mom, skating is the best thing in the world, I hope I have dreams about it forever.” So thankful for
these little children.
If I wasn’t thankful enough, the boys’ new favorite song is
“When I Lift your Name on High” and on our way to school, I looked in my rear
view mirror and saw two little hand praising the Lord.
So. Thankful.
