Saturday, November 19, 2011

choo choo

Today is Saturday.  I woke this morning with supreme optimism…I will clean the entire house! I will haul the Christmas stuff from the barn! I will sew! I will bake bread!

Soon enough my people woke and stumbled downstairs and ate the eggs I cooked that were beyond overhard.  Then I swept the floor and Henry pouted about not being able to build a huge Lego set that is his brothers.

Then I was tired.

So I wonder am I really tired? Or is it just watching all the energy of my children that makes me tired? I will never match their mad skills of running full speed to be first outside or riding bikes up and down the driveway enough to equate the Tour de France.

Sometimes it’s hard to be a mother/wife in limbo.  It’s obvious what needs doing but what you really want to do is go to the candy shop on Main St and buy candy for a gingerbread house that you are determined to make this year but by Dec 23 you kind of realize that you won’t and all that glorious by the pound candy is sitting in the dark hutch drawer in your dining room. 

This is how I live my life, it can be the candy store, the fabric store, the craft store.  When I was first married I followed through on my projects 100% of the time.  I would save and purchase and create with such determination that it makes me nauseous to even think about it.  I remember looking at stale mothers who had kids with unmatched clothes and boogers and thinking with a shudder how that would never be me. 

But sometimes I feel like the train is pulling into the booger station and it’s my kids who are about to climb aboard.  Some days when I am buried under the proverbial mountain of laundry I open my eyes and see Henry wearing pants that are too short and tiny shirts that dig into his armpits. Poor Henry! How did this happen?!

There is a whole list of reasons why this happens, and the more I study my own list the more it makes me appreciate my kids.

Instead of joining a playgroup I would much rather join a group of mothers of large families… we could get really loud and try to top each others stories.  None of us would have manicures or even a decent haircut for that matter.  Many would be wearing clothes our teenagers didn’t want and we would all most definitely be wearing comfortable shoes.  We would tell our kids to go outside. They wouldn’t be whiny though, they wouldn’t squeal for snacks and they would climb trees way up high.  They would create games to play amongst themselves. They would build a fort with stuff from the woods and tie the pieces with proper knots made from vines. One of us mothers would have a pack of graham crackers in a purse made of faux leather that the kids would open and divvy up evenly.  They would break each cracker into four small rectangles perfectly because they had lots of practice doing that.

And I suppose that is why I love having a big family.  As much as my instinct is to have a clean house I would much rather have plenty of little armed hugs, even if they struggle to put their arms around your growing belly and wipe their nose on your shirt in the process.

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7 comments:

~Lavender Dreamer~ said...

That is just so precious , my friend. I read the last couple of sentences out loud to my hubby. I had 4 sons all very close in age...not as large as your family but since they were ALL boys, I have lots of stories to tell! They are all together now for Thanksgiving in Texas...and I'm here! boohoo! ♥

Andi said...

Although I only have two kids, I think I'd fit in better with the large family group...Because my kids have always been allowed to dress themselves, forced to play outside until they realized it really was the BEST place to be, and I don't own anything EXCEPT faux leather purses! Who has money for real leather when they have kids with ridiculously skinny feet, and the shoes to fit their feet cost more than I've ever IN MY LIFE paid for a pair of shoes????

It's Just Dottie said...

You ,my friend live a beautiful life!! You are so very blessed!
Dottie

Unknown said...

Love those mugs! Is it possible to break Graham Crackers in neat squares? Maybe it's cause I only have two kids. We never learned to break them evenly! I have lots of unfinished crafts too and my only two kids are grown or nearly so if that makes you feel better! :)

~Lavender Dreamer~ said...

I'm stopping by again to wish you and your sweet family a Happy Thanksgiving! I'm so thankful for your friendship! Have a wonderful day! Try not to do too much! ♥♥♥

Juniper said...

I so wish you lived next door. Loved this post, and I couldn't agree with you more about so many parts of this post.
Yes comfortable shoes and we mothers of many children could console each other for those grand crafty plans that did not make it all the way there in time... and understand the feeling of facing that big pile of laundry and the feeling of tiredness when our list of things we want to do is long and ambitious but by 10 am we are tired ...and the day runs away... right out the door with the energetic shrieks and laughter of the children. I do come from a family of five so a somewhat chaotic, rarely totally clean house does feel semi normal. Unfortunately Maltese housewives are all about clean, not to mention the manicured, high heeled, dressed to the nines playgroup mothers.

Unknown said...

I have always yearned for a big family. I am an only child. I was content of course in the Fairyland and I adopted all the dolls and gnomes I could find but at the holidays other families would gather. The kids would play and have fights. I loved that...the fights. I never fought with anyone and it was lonely being good all the time.
God Bless you all, I've been very absent working my fanny off at a brand new thrift shop in town. But, I have thought of you and it's fun to catch up!