I was told once by my sweet husband, "Dear, children live here and we don't live in the parade of homes." "What?!?" Well, he's right and for those of you have visited us unexpectedly than you caught me, I have children, 4 of them to be exact. None of them are groomed perfectly, nor do they pick up there clothes. If fact, they run around this house making messes faster than I can talk. They come home from school, throw their backpacks down, kick shoes off, and ask for snack, and then another snack, then they leave me to assess the damages. Sometimes I think it would be nice to put a sign out in front of my home that says, "please come in, the house is clean...and it won't last." But I am afraid to say that that sign wouldn't be outside much, it would gather dust like the rest of my home.
But today it is clean, really clean, and I feel like I would like to stand in everyone of my closet and bask in a little bit of cleanliness. Thanks to Rob, who knows my true hearts desire, he cleaned and cleaned, and then I joined in after hair appointments., and the cleaning just kept going. So today I could throw my Christmas Party, or a gathering for friends...and I won't have to hide the unfinished dinner dishes in my bedroom. It has happened, I ran out of time, so I claimed a clean house then afterwards I went to my room and brought out the dishes to be cleaned. Oh, don't be scared I may have piles of laundry to do, but so far I have no rodents. Thank Heavens!!!
I have a dream, a little one really...one day I will come home to a maid cleaning my house, and warm cookies on the table. Is that too much to ask? Just remember that I love the smell of clean, the look of clean, I could even sit in my closet right now and the problems of the world would seem to disappear because there is an organized place in my life. This brings me to one of the things that I just hate. I hate opening closet, and they throw up on you....WHAT?!? WHY?!? Is it possible that people just stuff things in the closet, and had no sense to put it back where they got it.
OK...oh well right. Because all of this, the mess, the clothes, the constant endless pickup means something. It means that I have 4 great kids!!! It means that though I love a clean home, and wouldn't mind having a maid...I definitely love 4 little people a lot more. I have posted a quote from President Monson several times that talks about the tiny hand marks on the wall, and the piles of laundry disappearing and that we will miss them.
So here is an invitation to all my family and friends out there. I love a full house of kids, and people. I love laughter, food, and fun. I love to celebrate. Just remember when you come to visit admire if you would the art work on my wall, or sliding glass door that is where you find the best set of messy hand and feet marks. Enjoy the pile of laundry that is waiting to get folded. Don't be surprise to find dirty dishes trying to be hidden from the obvious sight. Feel free to ask what science experience we are doing with the layer of dust. If by chance you come when I have just finished cleaning every closet and room in the home, feel free to climb inside, or just know that you are one of the few who when opening the closet door it didn't throw up a pile of books on you!
4 comments:
Ditto, ditto, ditto. I LOVE have a clean looking, and smelling house. And with only 2 adults (no children, and no pets) I EXPECT it to always be that way. Everyone tells me I'll have to loosen up when we have kids, and I will. I would give up a sparkling clean house for a home filled with children's laughter any day!
I love that. You wrote from every Mothers heart. How wonderful to have your whole house clean! Love you tons and enjoy the look, smell, feel,...
I love a clean house too but it is SO much work! And I only have one kid! ha!
I thought you would enjoy this poem. I love love LOVE it!
"Mother, oh Mother, come shake out your cloth,
Empty the dustpan, poison the moth,
Hang out the washing and butter the bread,
Sew on a button and make up a bed.
Where is the mother whose house is so shocking?
She's up in the nursery, blissfully rocking.
Oh, I have grown shiftless as Little Boy Blue
Dishes are waiting and bills are past due
The shopping's not done and there's nothing for stew
And out in the yard there's a hullabaloo
The cleaning and scrubbing will wait till tomorrow,
For children grow up, as I've learned to my sorrow.
So quiet down, cobwebs. Dust go to sleep.
I'm rocking my baby and babies don't keep."
Ruth Hulbert Hamilton, 1958
I thought when the kids grew up and left home, that I would have a sparkling clean home---nope! So, it must have been me that was the problem. I get the basics done, but closets and cupboards seem to have a life of their own. Oh well! life is too much fun, to get bogged down in the mundane.
Post a Comment