Sick kids, slow day

Has anyone else noticed that time moves slowly when your kids are sick? Not only do you inevitably slow down because you have a little one needing your attention frequently, but time itself seems to slow down. Perhaps it's due to the long hours spent just snuggling your kid, at least I spend a lot of time sitting with them, I am sure I am not alone in that. Maybe it's because you feel so "unproductive"; no "to-do" list is going to get shortened, laundry will sit unfolded in the hamper (ok, I confess, that happens even when my kids aren't sick), dinner will likely be something quick and easy, often pjs are the attire for the day. The nights are often where the hours stretch the longest, sick kids aren't really great for a mom's "beauty sleep". Last night I was up 4 times in the 8 hours I had given myself for sleep, my kids weren't necessarily up that many times but the hacking sound coming from the other room was enough to rouse me from my bed to check on my sweet monkeys. If not for the brief visit with my cousin/friend, today would have felt like 2, running together.

Here's the deal though, I don't really mind days like today. It's hard to have a sick kid at home, but sometimes it's just what I need to slow down and pay attention to what is going on around me. Even as a stay-at-home mom it's easy to get busy with your "to-do" list, making sure you get your kids out for play dates, or get yourself to "mommy dates", and forget the most important portion of my job description- nurturer. I am ashamed to admit that I don't always sit and spend quality time with my kids, a day can pass so quickly I don't realize most of it has gone by with only (what I refer to as) "subsistence interaction" between my boys and me. What I mean is, a day can pass with most of my conversations with my kids consisting of what they want to eat, breaking up fights, making sure they are clean/clothed/fed, basically. I am sure that I am not alone in this either, it's easy for anyone to get busy with life. So I guess what I am saying is, although it's hard and I pray for quick recovery (for their sake more than anything, no one likes feeling crummy), I am thankful for the chance to slow down and spend some good snuggle time with my kids. I am thankful to be reminded that above all else, the most important thing I am doing with my life is raising them. It doesn't matter if my house gets a bit grubby, or my kids have cereal for dinner, or the laundry gets wrinkled from hours of being mashed together in a hamper, what matters is that my little guys know every second of every day that I love them, value them and that they are the best part of my day. There is not a thing unproductive about that :)

10 things I love about you...

This morning as I walked around my house I realized I was tallying in my mind all of the things I couldn't wait to get and fill it with; new bedding for my room and the boy's room, new furniture... pretty much everywhere, new rugs, more pictures, window coverings of some kind, etc... Suddenly it occurred to me I am not very thankful, or I wasn't being very thankful. Yes, there are many things I would love to do to my home, but why, as I walk through it, are those the things I always see? We have been here for four months and already I am desensitized to the beauty that is my home itself? For that matter, am I already unaware of how incredibly blessed I am to have it in the first place? So I decided to make a list of some of the things I love the most about my home and share it with you.

1.) We live on 30 acres, it's a bit much for folks who don't plan to do a lot of farming, but I love it! I cannot count the number of moose I have seen wandering 50 yards from my front door.

2.) It is so peaceful, not just the property but the home itself. I very much attribute this to the fact that we (literally) buried the word of God within our home. The foundation has my mother's old bible just below our concrete floors and the walls have pages of bible verses tucked behind the drywall. Some may think that's a little weird, and that's ok, I am used to being thought of as weird :).

3.) All of the pieces of "drywall art", courtesy of my husband. He has done amazing things throughout the house, making it uniquely ours.

4.) My kitchen, it's a good sized eat in kitchen (I'm not a fan of formal dining rooms, just not my style). There is plenty of room for many cooks if needs be and yet not so big that if I am the only one in there I feel like I am in a cavern. Plus, I have TWO ovens! This has greatly reduced the number of cookies I burn because I've gotten tired of waiting and have wandered away forgetting about the last dozen.

5.) The playroom, ahhh the playroom! I love having a place for all of the toys where the kids can wreak havoc, have fun and I am not tripping over their toys. In the shop I was buried in toys all the time, now I rarely see them, unless I am in the playroom myself. It is wonderful when guests come because we can actually carry on a conversation and the kids can have a ball among the piles of toys. I am aware that a bedroom can do the same, but at least we don't have to worry about kids jumping off of dressers (or windowsills as I caught Isaiah doing the other day) onto the beds!

6.) My fireplace, it is the coolest thing I have seen. I love that its functional and artsy, even if it does mean my tv is mounted 7 feet in the air (at the top!).

7.) My gianormous master bedroom. When we first realized the floor plan had grown (long story) and the master was going to be huge I thought it was a waste of space. Now I realize it is wonderful to have the extra room and privacy. I am certain when my boys are teenagers I will be more than thankful for my exercise stuff to be out of the way (as I am sure they will be glad their friends can't see mom sweating on the treadmill:)!

8.) We have plenty of room for company. This weekend we had a pretty good windstorm in the Mat-Su Valley, causing many power outages. My cousin and his family, after losing power, were able to make a spontaneous decision to come here and stay the night with us without anyone feeling crammed in. It was fun!

9.) The details; the deep window sills, the two-toned cabinets, the art alcove, the fact that the wood floor/carpet/tile all have the same hint of golden brown in them without being too matchy-matchy. All of these things make the house uniquely ours. All of the stress that goes into building your own home (whether you do the work or hire someone) is made worth it when you have a home that is exactly what you envisioned for your family.

10.) My flooring, especially my carpet. The wood floor we chose is beautiful and something my husband has been wanting for many years (we built one other home before this one), we were fortunate to find it at a great price. The tile is beautiful and not too ornate. The carpet though, ahhh the carpet, it's so soft and feels great on your feet. It's also a bit "non-traditional", a kind of "short shag" although I am not sure that's what its called. I like that it's not your typical carpet, cause I have always felt a little "atypical" so it feels like me.

There, those are 10 good reasons to stop constantly thinking about all the things I don't have for my house. This doesn't mean I can't plan or dream or window shop, I know that it's totally normal to be excited to really make it homey. We just don't have the ability to get all those things right now, and I need to not feel like I am lacking because we can't.

My house from the front, taken this past spring