It was late. 2 hours of putting my 3 year old to bed. Past 8 pm and having been at work that morning at 6 am, working, then coming up to tend to the kids for the rest of the day. I was tired. Worn out. Ready to throw in the towel and rest. Wait! I'm a mom. I cannot clock out as soon as my children do, I now have a house to tend to. I look around - survey the damage - hold back the tears - take a deep breath. Dishes (at least 2 loads to be washed... by hand), 4 loads of laundry to fold and 2 to rotate through the washer and dryer, floor that needs swept/mopped, bathroom to pick up after the bedtime hurricane, dinner to put away. Yep, I had a lot to do.
Dishes - Thank you Lord for giving us dishes to wash, dishes that we can eat off of. Dishes that I can serve my children from. Food that dirtied these dishes. Clean water that filled these cups. So many dishes - thank you for the 2 days of food that filled our bellies and for the reminder that we have not gone without.
Laundry - Thank you Lord for the HEAP of laundry on my couch that I have the ability to sit on (though, most of the time, my laundry puts it to good use... and I let it...). Thank you for my children who are growing and needing new clothes. Thank you for the small stains on some of my favorite clothes that did not come out, despite soaking them in whatever spray I have in there, for they are reminders of the fun we had while making cookies, or the awesome birthday party we had just the week before. Thank you Lord for a washer and dryer that work and allow me to give my children clean clothes with minimum work each and every day.
Floor - Thank you Lord for giving my precious baby girl hands to throw her food on the floor and a mouth that can get 20% of the food in her mouth. Thank you for the extra food that could land on the floor, while my kiddos still got plenty to eat. Thank you for the milk that splattered all over the floor - what seemed to have gotten in EVERY area of the kitchen, dining room, and hallway - my kids have milk to drink, thank you. Thank you for the yogurt that filled in the gaps where the milk failed to reach - it's a staple food item here and one that we have never had to go without.
Bathroom - Thank you Lord for the pee-soaked floor around the toilet, for it shows me that my son is growing up and able to pee on his own... albeit, I think I may need to supervise I bit more. Thank you for the wet towels, wet floor, and wet me. My kids had a warm bath and tons of fun playing together in a bathtub.
For those nights when I need to take a VERY deep breath before surveying the damage of the day. For the nights when I fight with all I have to not break down a cry of exhaustion when I see that so much still needs to be done. It helps to see how much I truly have in life. It helps put things into perspective and to see that silver-lining, no matter how small it may be on that particular day. Whether you believe it God or not, I give all my thanks to my God, you can still be thankful for the amazing life you have and the wonderful blessings you have. I am blessed. It doesn't make all my days easier. It doesn't make me any less tired or want any less help or need any less encouragement. But it does get me through some of those harder days. Thank you Lord, for Your gentle reminders.
And thank you for posting about how He sends those gentle reminders!
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