For all you moms out there...

Summer, well, summer break is drawing to a close at our house. We've got about a week and a half before school begins and my house shrinks from 4 kids to 1 kid...actually 2 kids because I babysit, but only one of my own. The last few days have been a little trying on the nerves. The checkout clerk at Walmart asked me yesterday if I was ready for school to start. I don't know if it was the behavior of my kids or the look on my face that prompted that question. No one napped today despite the fact that we had a friend for a sleepover last night. I headed downstairs to blow off some steam on my elliptical while everyone "rested" in their own rooms. About 10 minutes into the workout at a commercial I glanced around the room, took a big sigh and immediately launched into mental gripes about the cleanliness of the playroom. My gaze rested on a naked barbie. And the thought struck me...someday you are going to miss having naked barbies on your floor. The barbies haven't even been played with that much this summer. My girls are 8 and 9 and their birthday requests this last winter were MP3 players. It goes fast....the summers, the school years, the kids years, etc. It seems I've struggled with contentedness all my adult life. I tend to wish things away so I don't have to deal with the difficulty of the moment. I took pause and realized I could either gripe the next week and a half away or I could enjoy these moments...the squeals of enjoyment of life, the hugs and kisses and the discipleship and training moments. The next time I blink, there will be no more naked barbies on the floor.