From the moment I walk in the door at the end of the day, to the moment my head finally hits the pillow every night, I am constantly rushing to get everything ready for the next day...Just to rush out the door the next morning and start it all over again.
Thanks to a new position at work, my regular hours have shifted and I am now out at 430 instead of 500. While that may not seem like a big change, it does allow me to get home about 45 minutes earlier than I had been and with a life as hectic as hours that makes all the difference! And it allows me to enjoy moments like this...
After cleaning up from dinner tonight, I plopped myself down in the oversized chair in the living room and heaved a big "thank goodness I have a moment to catch my breath" sigh. I yelled to the 2 youngest girls to head to the bathroom to brush their teeth, and I leaned my head back, closed my eyes and tried to assess how much damage would be done if I just dosed off for a minute or 2. Realizing I hadn't heard the sound of little feet head towards the bathroom yet, I shouted for them once again. And that's when I heard it. Giggling. The kind of light hearted giggle that immediately energizes you and you cant help but perk up a little when you hear it. It makes you want to laugh along with it, even if you have no idea what is going on. This caught my interest so I opened my eyes and looked around to see where this wondrous sound was coming from. That's when I saw a hunched over, 2 legged, headless figure approach me and slam into me and the chair. It took me a second to realize what was going on. It turns out, this mysterious figure was none other than McKenzie with her legs in the arm holes of a hoodie, bent in half with her head stuck in the hood. The giggles that accompanied this were coming from Leah, Beatriz (our Spanish exchange student) and Alyvia as they all bent, tucked and contorted their way into hoodies of their own. They looked like what I imagine the chicken I have planned for dinner tomorrow would look like if it suddenly leapt out of the crockpot and proceeded to run around my house. I know, this is all extremely weird. But if you stop paying attention to how weird it is that I have multiple children in my house that like to put sweatshirts on upside down and run around the house like little scary Gollum-creatures, you will see the really cool part of this night. I had a 5 year old, 8 year old, 13 year old, and 16 year old all laughing so hard they were almost crying. They were playing together, enjoying each others company, being silly together. For a few minutes, the age difference didn't matter, there was no language barrier, no "cool" teens vs little kids....They were just 4 sisters hanging out, being weird and having fun with each other. And that, my friends, is a beautiful thing...
Monday, September 21, 2015
Friday, September 18, 2015
The oldest
Within minutes of meeting me, you will know that I am the mother of 4 girls. Its the thing in my life that I am most proud of, and so I talk about that fact all the time. I'm sure it makes some people crazy, and I would say I am sorry, but it is a major part of who I am and I can't really be sorry for that.
My oldest daughter is 15 and is growing into this person that really needs me for very little. She is a singer, an actor, has recently discovered she's a fair runner, and is a seriously great debater. It wasn't that long ago that I would describe my oldest daughter as silly, outgoing, friendly, and playful. But somewhere along the way (It must have been when I blinked), that little girl with the great big smile and carefree attitude, grew into the bright, intelligent, slightly timid, opinionated and articulate young woman I see for a few minutes every day.
I miss the talks she and I used to share. I miss the friendship that is only shared between a mom and her girl. I miss laughing with her. I miss her choosing to spend time with me. I miss hearing long stories about how her day went, who she talked to, and what she planned on doing the next day. I miss the way she would walk up beside me and just grab my hand. I miss sitting down on the couch at the end of the day and having her walk over and wiggle her way in, so that she was somehow sitting right on top of me. I even miss the way she smelled after a day of playing outside, or right after pulling her out of the tub.
But, as much as I miss all of those things, I am so proud of the young woman she is becoming. I cannot wait to see the things she will do, the path she will walk. I saw a quote once, when she was little (and I am sure I am butchering this, but you will get the gist of it), "Let her sleep, for when she wakes she will move mountains". It was painted over a crib on a nursery wall. I remember thinking when I saw it that that would be such a good quote to have for my girl. I know I was right. She is strong, fiercely opinionated, and determined. I can't wait to see those mountains move.....
My oldest daughter is 15 and is growing into this person that really needs me for very little. She is a singer, an actor, has recently discovered she's a fair runner, and is a seriously great debater. It wasn't that long ago that I would describe my oldest daughter as silly, outgoing, friendly, and playful. But somewhere along the way (It must have been when I blinked), that little girl with the great big smile and carefree attitude, grew into the bright, intelligent, slightly timid, opinionated and articulate young woman I see for a few minutes every day.
I miss the talks she and I used to share. I miss the friendship that is only shared between a mom and her girl. I miss laughing with her. I miss her choosing to spend time with me. I miss hearing long stories about how her day went, who she talked to, and what she planned on doing the next day. I miss the way she would walk up beside me and just grab my hand. I miss sitting down on the couch at the end of the day and having her walk over and wiggle her way in, so that she was somehow sitting right on top of me. I even miss the way she smelled after a day of playing outside, or right after pulling her out of the tub.
But, as much as I miss all of those things, I am so proud of the young woman she is becoming. I cannot wait to see the things she will do, the path she will walk. I saw a quote once, when she was little (and I am sure I am butchering this, but you will get the gist of it), "Let her sleep, for when she wakes she will move mountains". It was painted over a crib on a nursery wall. I remember thinking when I saw it that that would be such a good quote to have for my girl. I know I was right. She is strong, fiercely opinionated, and determined. I can't wait to see those mountains move.....
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