Priorities

My my my how things have changed! The girls and I have been seizing some opportunities for adventure lately, going to the zoo Thursday and to Lee's Summit for some shopping yesterday and the pool today. Every now and then, I wake up with an itch to get out of the house so we'll pull on some clothes and hop in the car for a trip to Crown Center or Target or Hobby Lobby....just something we haven't seen in a while! Notice I said "pull on some clothes" and we leave. That means no shower, no makeup, no hair did....just go!
I remember college days and taking half hour showers, looking at every hair to make sure it was in it's place, enjoying my face time for makeup and now, we've got to get on the road and make every moment count when the meltdown is T-minus 3 hours away!!!
This is partly what I was talking about in my last post. I will not miss feeling like a crazy person trying to get 2 children, their snacks, their favorite toy for the trip, diapers, sippies, etc., in to the car so we can go, only to need to be back in the car by nap time. When we go to KC, we can usually get out of here by 9 or 930, then 40 minutes in the car....we get a solid 2 hours usually. BUT, the time we share is so precious. Their excitement to go to a "special place" (because if I told Lauren where we were going before we left, I'd get asked a million times on the trip if we're there yet followed by the "why?" for every answer there after) is palpable, including squeals of delight, jumping on the bed, and excited giggles :)
So I just tell myself, people will be focused on their glow of delight, not my bedhead and washed out face. This time in our life is flying. With Lauren already being 4, we have one more year of fun and fancy free living before we need to buckle down and start school. This is largely why I've chosen to homeschool for the time being. I just can not fathom giving up these moments. We will sit around our kitchen table for lessons, snuggle on the couch for reading time, then hit the road for more adventures, all while learning about God's world. The beauty of homeschooling is being able to see her face when she's learning, taking field trips regularly, watching the exploration become knowledge. Another opportunity I just can't give away to another person.
I hope my children feel loved in the midst of my sometimes hectic house cleaning or frenetic search for missing items so that that silly chore is out of the way. My wish for a maid, cook, gardener (only part time!), and personal assistant comes out of the desire to simply be my daughters' mommy. What a perfect world it would be with no chores, just fun. But while chores still exist, I will enjoy their little hands taking turns putting handfuls of laundry into the dryer and chubby fingers pushing buttons on the dishwasher to get it started so we can have days where that stuff piles up and we just enjoy whatever adventure awaits.