A Tube of Toothpaste

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.