you may or may not remember this instagram post from last week...
you might have thought,
"gosh, she's crafty!" or "what a fun mom!" or "i wish i had the time to do nifty little projects with my toddlers!"
well, don't be fooled.
while i like to think i am the most awesome mom and sometimes quite crafty, the 30 minutes that it took to make and hang these leaves was my saving grace for the day.
the night before had been a particularly rough one for miss Olive {leaving me lacking some zzz's}, Justin had to leave by 6 that morning for work {so no breakfast help with the older 2}, and Asa and Bellamy seemed to be hating life from the moment their little eyes popped open to greet the morning. some day it was starting out to be. hmph.
after the nightmare that was breakfast time, i tried taking all 3 of them into the sunroom {Olive in the bouncy seat}, sitting in the floor and letting them go to town on the chalkboard...
while i'd have loved to join in, i was busy consoling Olive every .2 seconds.
meanwhile, Asa and Bellamy had moved from the chalkboard to the walls and white couch.
this wouldn't do.
i was able to get the little one to drift off to sleep and moved with the other two to the living room car table {also known as the coffee table}
this lasted 10 minutes. as i watched/listened to Bellamy whine & cry herself into oblivion every time Asa even looked at her in a manner that was displeasing {dramatic much},
i decided i'd had enough. something had to give and i knew i couldn't escape.
instead of screaming, i prayed.
i walked out back with Bellamy on my heels and let the door shut between us... she was really happy about that.
as i watched the first of the autumn leaves fall, i was reminded of this craft.
one of my favorites as a child. i decided it had to be done.
at the ripe old ages of 1 and 2, the level of actual participation was quite low, but they did what they could and loved watching the rest.
{although i'll admit Bellamy collapsed in a blubbering heap at my feet while i took on the tedious chore of shaving the crayons}
once our fabulous creation was complete,
they hung each leaf on the piano with a little twinkle in their eye... so proud of themselves.
30 minutes had gone by and now it was FINALLY lunch time! hallelujah!
in that moment when i wanted to scream "everybody shut up!" and run crying down the street without looking back,
the Lord gave me this gift. a 30 minute gift. 30 minutes of smiles and laughter and togetherness and PEACE.
so again i was renewed and oh so thankful for the place i'm in.
i know there are many more days like this to come, but i'm a mom and this is what i prayed for. so, bring it on.
