Moments like these...

Moments like these make me so so grateful to be the mom around here.  

The kids were out of school Friday and Monday so that meant four days together.  I will tell you the truth, it meant four days of never having a kitchen table clear of crumbs (I swear these kidlets have a sixth sense for when I have wiped things off because the second I leave the room they seem to be compelled to scatter food morsels across the freshly cleaned surfaces).  It meant empty shoes and socks (empty socks -- gross!) dotting every room because people around here prefer not to wear shoes or socks if at all possible but do not necessarily prefer putting them away when they pry them from their little feet.  It meant two full days trapped at home with each other while the Suburban was in the shop so everyone was stuck with just our family (the horror!).  It meant four days of vacuuming over and over throughout the day because bits of grass get tramped in on the carpet or paper bits end up everywhere from craft projects or the crumbs I mentioned earlier are not satisfied on the table and counter tops and migrate their way into the living room (sigh).  It meant fingers wiped on the refrigerator and juice spilled and not fully cleaned leaving only vague, pink stickiness.  It meant toothpaste dribbled down the front of the bathroom cabinet and balls and Nerf darts EVERYWHERE!!!

But it also meant time spent enjoying each other.  It meant being glad to put down my book to read to my five year old.  It meant "Mom, come see this!" over and over as we looked at sunsets and Lego creations and drawings and freshly painted sculptures and whatever else the kids had discovered or created.  It meant three little ones tagging along while I grocery shopped and the fun they had helping me choose which cheese or which yogurt or which cereal to bring home.  It meant kids biting into the bear claws that Aubrey chose for family home evening treat only to be rudely awakened by the fact that the bear claws were actually apple fritters which no one in this house likes(oh the good-natured teasing which resulted).  It meant one night where we simply could not stop laughing and when it was time for family prayer we worked to pull it together only to have someone start sputtering while Josh prayed and we all ended up in stitches again while trying to hold in all in and finish the prayer.

And while counter crumbs and empty shoes and paper bits are frustrating and annoying, I really hope what we remember most from these times together is all the other pieces.  I hope we remember quoting movies left and right.  I hope we remember casting spells on each other with bread stick wands.  I hope we remember dress up and belly laughs and cuddles and stories and all of the beautifully mundane moments that honestly turn this life together into something more than just watching time pass.

 They may be crazzies (and I may be one too), but they are forever and ever MY crazzies!  I think I'll keep them.