Eating Like Cookie Monster

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Last week school began. Three kids off to school. They left and took my sanity with them.

It was a bad week. For parenting

But I'm not supposed to tell you that.

I'm supposed to tell you that my life is perfect. I am perfect. I never yell, lose my patience, throw fits or give useless threats. My children are perfectly behaved. They always listen. They never talk back. Their rooms are immaculate and book bags tidy. Just like the rest of their tastefully decorated and photo-shoot, magazine-ready home.

I'm supposed to tell you that I can leap tall buildings in a single bound. I laugh in the face of adversity. I eat stress for lunch. I can juggle making supper, refereeing spats, folding laundry, and milling flour all at the same time.

I always know the right thing to say. I give wonderful gifts and I never forget a birthday

But the truth is granola bar wrappers, smashed Goldfish, sippy cups, and toys litter my living room/kitchen. The dishwasher sits patiently, waiting to be emptied. My empty coffee cup placed haphazardly on a used plate sits on the living room table. Laundry is piling up, even though three loads spun through their cleaning yesterday. The sun peaks through my finger-print smeared windows. Dust dancing through a sunbeam. The living room carpet askew. Beds unmade.

I spend a lot of my time repeating myself. I sigh more than I smile. I'm sure our neighbour's have grown weary of our yelling. My favourite line is "if I have to tell you one more time....".

Oh, and I hate homework.

As a mother I have felt pressure to be perfect. In all areas. So I have lived in that expectation and then become frustrated when things are far from it.

But that was last week.

Who am I kidding, I need to squash that notion almost on a daily basis.

I'm getting better though.

Having a tidy home is nice, but it's not really all that important. What is of utmost importance is simply this- to love God and love others.

And I have 6 others in this home who need to know I care more about them then about the amount of crumbs under the kitchen table.

Even if they do eat like cookie monster.

Comments

  1. Carolyn HicksSeptember 14, 2011 at 11:34 AM

    Here's to having your priorities placed in the right order!

    What else can I say ...been there, done that. Still there, still doing that.

    Oh, and that homework thing .... sorry to inform you but it will be a thorn in your side til the day the last one graduates. Sigh!

    ReplyDelete
  2. ADMSeptember 14, 2011 at 12:33 PM

    Oh joy! Something to look forward to, Carolyn. :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. AnonymousSeptember 14, 2011 at 1:45 PM

    Sounds like a normal household to me.
    Just keep smiling.
    Jane Weiler

    ReplyDelete
  4. AnonymousSeptember 26, 2011 at 9:26 AM

    Love your honesty, Angie! If more people were more honest with each other, I think we'd find that desire for appearing perfect start to fade...because, let's face it, NONE OF US is perfect - not even close! Here's to being real! (And by the way, my living room and kitchen are almost constantly a mess, I can't remember the last time I dusted, and my kids had smoothie popsicle smeared on their faces from lunch time to bedtime yesterday...) :) Bless you, Friend!
    Joy :)

    ReplyDelete
  5. ADMSeptember 26, 2011 at 11:34 AM

    Thanks, Jane, for using the word "normal". Hahaha!
    Joy, thank-you for your encouragement. My children like to wear their food too....along with anything else they touch.

    ReplyDelete

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