Our Days

Oh how true this saying is...especially when a mother has only little boys. I have two bouncing, quite literally, boys ages one and three years. They are whirlwinds some days and it's all I can do to keep my head on straight with the house still attached to its foundation...at least at first glance. I guess I never realized just how much work being a mom is and everyday I am reminded that it is in fact a miracle that we are still a thriving society of many different people.

I would likely be awakened by an alarm in the mornings or by sleeping in til my body said, "enough" if I didn't have my boys. Instead every morning, sometimes the middle of the night, I am awakened by my three year old bounding into bed with me. Some days I am lucky enough to get him to lie with me for a few extra minutes of shut eye, but mostly it's my queue to get up and start the coffee pot so I can tend to his needs...a much needed diaper change, a sippy of milk, dry cereal, and the blessed Thomas the Tank Engine that he constantly wants played. This goes on til his brother wakes...usually around seven, where I shift focus for a minute to another much needed diaper change, a bottle of milk and a new episode of Thomas the Tank Engine. (If I'm lucky at this point he allows my to put on PBS while I make breakfast.)

Breakfast is then made for both boys and while they eat I enjoy a cup of hot coffee, sometimes while actually sitting. After breakfast we (I) clean up the mess(es) and start some dishes. Then it's play time...we'll call our game DESTROY THE ROOMS AS QUICKLY AND EFFICIENTLY AS POSSIBLE!!! This takes a total of ten minutes and the rest of the morning we spend dragging different toys into the living room, playing with them until we're bored (a few minutes) and getting some new ones. A snack then comes which I also get to pick up after as well as diaper changes if needed.

If I'm lucky enough to get the kids dressed with no fighting then we head outside to play. Since we live in Arizona the weather is almost always perfect for this...Thank God. The boys and I chase each other, go down the slide, play on the swings, maybe take turns pulling each other in the little red wagon and sometimes I'll pick some weeds while we're at it. This lasts anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour and then it's back inside to make lunch including another round of Thomas...that engine just keeps on going. After lunch the boys get to go down for naps and I get to clean up the lunch mess(es), do some laundry and/or spend my time cleaning up the living room and getting things together so that I can start dinner. Once in awhile I'll get to spend nap time paying bills, balancing the checkbook, blogging or going onto facebook to get away for a few minutes.

After nap time I once again change diapers and give another little snack while Hadrien pleads for Thomas and I either give in or put on some Disney cartoon while I start dinner. I almost never get around to picking up the kids rooms...daddy usually helps with this task and I am grateful for it. While I get dinner going I'm usually fighting to maintain some order in the freshly picked up living room and squelching any brotherly fights that break out...sometimes one or both of the boys will simply be hanging from my leg(s) or climbing on the counter while I cook...this distraction takes great skill to overcome lest I burn myself or the food. In the middle of this is usually when daddy gets home from work and sees a frazzled mom, a messy house and two cranky boys, I'm amazed he stills walks in and kisses and hugs us all. Daddy goes around picking up and getting comfy while I get plates made and places set up for our dinner.

We all eat together and then we move onto bath time. This task we alternate...some days I bathe and dress, some daddy does, but mostly one of us will wash while the other cleans up the dinner mess and then that one will dress while the other gets beds turned down and starts turning down the lights for some quiet time before bed. Daddy usually puts Liam down himself after a final few ounces of milk and kisses all around. Then we both go in with Hadrien to say prayers, blessings and one of us may stay for a book before giving a final kiss goodnight. Daddy and I settle in for a few minutes before Hadrien is up out of bed and we usher him back...this repeats for anywhere between 10 minutes to an hour depending on how persistent Hadrien is being. Once he's fully asleep Daddy goes about getting his clothes ready for the next day and I either follow about from room to room if we're having a discussion or I plant myself on the couch, rarely I take a hot bath to wash the day away.

Daddy and I then spend some time together whether we watch tv or share the days events or both, sometimes we play a kindly competitive game of chess or risk or battle ship...only the first do I ever win at. Once this is done we say our Vespers together before turning in for sleep ourselves and then we repeat with some slight variations every day. It's quite amazing really. We make sure to spend quality time with our boys and each other everyday. It's busy and hectic and our boys are still quite young, I can only imagine what will be in store for us once they start school and sports. I love every minute of it, although I could do without the fussiness that occurs once a week all day and most evenings, every minute of it is a blessing. My day in a nutshell doesn't seem like much, but to my family I know it means the world and I am grateful that God gave them to me!