On that November day, after reading chapter 13, 'Surviving or Thriving,' in "The Magnolia Story" written by Joanna Gaines, I looked down to watch my 15 month old baby boy discovering how to put his Veggie Straws in a bowl and then take them out over and over again with that sweet little innocent baby wonder in his eyes. Then it really hit home...I don't get these days or even moments back, but I will have the rest of my life to 'perfect' my house!
Yes! I am a perfectionist who gets frustrated by clutter!! But, I believed I was missing out on those special moments of laughing with my kids in their mess because I was getting upset with them about their mess.
There will be years to come (hard to imagine in some of my current life moments of mess!) when I will be wishing for 'little people clutter' to clean up.
Why am I so worried about my house always looking completely perfect anyways? My kids certainly don't care if things are stunningly arranged at every moment of the day, and my husband is happy if our home is a happy place. The 'house stressing' is usually pertaining to how I feel that my house appears to others. That's pride on my part.
Sure, we have a cleaning routine, I still have to put away a few baby messes here and there, and have kids clean up a bit throughout the day. I'm not talking about living in a pig sty! Teaching the kids how to organize and put their things away and having easy storage for them plays a big role in my sanity. But, 'the plan' is definitely not always going to work; we are just going to have those 'days!' I decided Jo was right...I am not going to spend the majority of my day cleaning and picking up and nagging after my kids for perfection, even if it means staying up an extra hour at night. I want to enjoy my kids!
So, God reminded me today to make a different choice in my outlook. (We do have a choice, after all!) Instead of allowing myself to be frustrated and upset by 'kid mess,' I will enjoy the little person IN the mess and thank God for allowing my husband and I to have that little person in our home! I realized that my relationship with them is more important than a show-stopping house to impress others while neglecting the feelings of those who live here!
Thanks, God, for stepping on my toes today!
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