Dirt + A Voice

I haven't written for awhile, and was inspired today while mopping my floors.  I'm realizing it is things like mopping and dishes that are making my feel too distracted from sitting down and writing about the great things going on in our lives here.

Kitch-off-dry. Yep, I was sitting on a diaper...and still am.

You see, we live in an amazing neighborhood, as I have written about several times, but what I  haven't added is that our HOME is not always impressive to me.   So, with that said, here are some of the facts: The 6 of us live in a about 1,000 sq ft with one tiny bathroom.  I have this one room called a kitch-off-dry room.  It is where, in one corner, is my little kitchen, in the other my office (where I am typing now) and directly behind me is my washer/dryer.  I'm washing a load now and trying to type to it's cleaning beat... oh yeah...  I'm constantly worried about getting dryer lint in my food, and food on my computer. Oh, and don't forget my pots and pans that are all in the garage.  =/  As for sleeping arrangements, my tween-ager shares a room with her 4 year-old cheer-leading-princess sister while Dirty 9yr Old Boy shares a room with Dirtier 2yr Old Boy. I share with Dirtiest 27yr Old Boy. =)  Actually, he's more stinky than dirty.  Our living room is also the play room/homework room/diaper changing room/exercise room.  My dining room table holds only our family plus 2, so if we invite you over, don't be offended if you have to sit on the couch. =)

Please don't quit reading, thinking this is a pity-party post.  It's not. I promise this all has an "inspiring" lesson I learned at the end.... But it's how we live, and I think it's important to understand to truly understand US.

We have lived here for 2 years now.  It is the longest I have ever lived in one spot since I left for college.  So in the last two years, we have truly created of home for ourselves.  We make it work, and most days I don't even realize the list of "issues" our home has.  Did I forget to mention up there that my kitchen only has ONE outlet??? Oh, oops, I'm don't complaining, sorry.  My point is, that our home is squishy and has many people in it, so I feel as though I am constantly trying to clean up what looks to me like a terrible mess.  My  floors are always dirty it seems, toys are always being discovered in couch cushions and in random drawers, I wipe up yogurt off the back of the dining room chairs every day and am always putting things back in their "place".

Soaked and happy.

But something happened today while I was mopping.  All of a sudden I heard a voice say "A messy house means life is happening in it.".  Um, yes God? Was that you?  I got all goose-bumpily for a second and stopped mopping to think about what I just heard.  And I realized how correct that statement is.  My home not only proves that life is happening in it, but life is pretty much flying through it! Through the doors, on the beds, under the couches; proof that life is happening here.  And as the mother, I get the job of reliving some of those precious moments: Goldfish on the floor from Asher feeding the dog (I remember trying not to laugh as I told him to stop throwing them); nail polishes and cotton balls on the table from Lex and Kyrsta playing Beauty Shop (my nails are lime green from being one of their customers).  Right now I resisted the urge to discipline Tayvin, Alexis, and Kyrsta as they thought it would be fun to get soaking wet on the trampoline...with all their clothes on = more laundry for me to do! But the smiles on their faces told me "Mom, we're just living life."  Sigh...

-6 piles of toothpaste spit in the sink at night.
-Overflowing bins of shoes at each door.
-Puddles of water on the bathroom floor.
-Books left out from bedtime...
Life. Happening. Here.

Lord, thank you for blessing me with life and giving me ways to be thankful for it, even in the mundane and tiresome tasks.  Help me to take a step back every now and then and remember that a mess made wont last, but the memories it helped create, last a lifetime.