Messes

Well, it seems as though fall may have finally arrived here in SD. In fact, in some parts of the state, it sounds

like it might just be skipped altogether...blizzard warnings in the west!

Today I was watching a friend's kiddos for awhile, and having a really full house got me thinking about messes. They couldn't go outside to play cuz it was cold and raining, and the messes in the house started to pile up as they played, created, and were just being - well - kids.

As a mom, there are gazoodles of messes in our lives, aren't there?

It starts when baby first is coming and arrives. Birth is messy. It's a glorious mess, actually. Baby comes out messy, baby immediately starts making messes - in their diaper, on our shoulders, and in our lives. I mean really. Let's be honest. A baby really messes things up. Kids really mess things up.

They interrupt our "me, myself, and I" way of living. They require sacrifice. They require parts of you - your attention, energy, loving, hugs, encouragement, and teaching. All. The. Time.

The thing is, once you meet your sweet precious little one for the first time, when you actually *see* their face and can hold them and kiss them and look into their eyes, it's a mess that you could never again imagine not having.

As they grow, the same thing happens - over and over again. You think you get it all figured out and then they go and mess it up. They start to walk, talk, repeat what you say [yikes!], and become their own individual person, and it's a mess that you can't imagine not having. They turn 5, start school, loose teeth, make friends of their own, and it's a mess that you can't imagine not having. They turn 10, and well - I don't really know what happens then. I'm not there yet. I have a feeling they're gonna mess it all up again, though. Just when I think I've got it. And it will be a mess that I can't imagine not having. I won't even begin to think about the teen years yet.

My kitchen counter right now

Not only do they mess with our selfishness, they make messes in our homes. I know you know what I'm talking about. By the end of the day your home barely resembles itself. They are constantly getting new things out, making up games, building forts, crafting, playing with legos or lincoln logs. All while never even considering putting anything back when they are done. 

Even so. As I think about the messes around our house right now, I'm also counting my blessings. Each mess is a mess that I would never want to not have. Because if I didn't have it, it would mean I didn't have "my heart walking around outside my body."* 

I prayed for children for so long. I feel like the most blessed mama in the world to have them now. I'll take their messes - in my life and in our house - because it means I get to have them right here with me. And it's a beautiful mess.

~Evie

*borrowed from Elizabeth Stone's quote: "Making the decision to have a child - it is momentous. It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body."