No Longer a Hater

If you have been following along - for more than a few days - you know that I dislike (ahem) really dislike laundry.  

You've seen me post photos of hating on laundry.

And entire blog posts about it. Like here earlier this week. And here awhile back. 

Maybe it was the magic of Mother's Day, or the magic of possible scrutiny by all y'all Raised in Raleigh followers. BUT. I had all kinds of laundry help the other day. And I am here to tell you it was FANTASTIC. 

Yes. Me. Sarah. Landry. Fantastic. 

Hubby and I folding. Kids helping fold (or unfold in the case of little man who wanted to "me do it!") and put things on hangers. Then all three of them running around the house putting things away. 

Here is your basket. Your basket. Your basket. The kids helped hubby. He helped them. I kept folding. They would bring me more hangers. 

Many hands make light work. This was a true example. We had the weekly laundry pile knocked out in less than an hour. Seriously. Five, maybe six loads in an hour. Amazingness.

I loved it. They all seemed to enjoy working together. 

PS - I would show you a picture of my couch and coffee table without laundry, but I'm going to bed early!

Laundry

Its one of those things that keeps coming up. Over and over again. Every day there are more dirty clothes. The piles in the bathrooms just grow and grown. Every weekend, or every few days, I carry them downstairs, sort them into piles and start the washing process.

Whites.

Darks.

Towels.

Bright colors.

Oxy. Water. Soap.

Repeat. Repeat. Repeat. On an average week, repeat 8 to 10 times.

The piles of clothes grown in the bathroom. The piles grow in the laundry room. Then the piles grow in next to the couch. In front of the TV.

Then they start to gather dust. Figuratively, but some times literally too. It can easily be two or three or eight days before they get folded.

Its not that laundry takes an extreme amount of energy, its the process.

There are so many parts, and you have to keep each portion going to make the world go round. It should be a well oiled machine.

It should be wear, sort, wash, fold, put away.

But its not. Its over stuffed closet, big pile, not sorted, wrinkled piles, gather up the hangers, distribute. Its a struggle.

Its should not be a struggle. But it is. Ugh.

Keeping Score

I've heard of sports leagues for kids where they don't keep score. Big Girl's basketball league didn't. I understand how they can be good for kids. Everyone gets a chance to play. Everyone has a feeling of accomplishment at the end of the game. Great. 

But we aren't those people. At our house we keep score. We try hard. And. We have winners and losers. 

This weekend we did a score tally on the school work from last week. The week had started off rough, but I knew there were more good points than bad ones. So, we tallied up the comments from the teacher on the weeks' work.

:) = 6
:( = 1

Pretty good score. Certainly enough to earn some dessert! :)

Go

I think every mom remembers the first word their child says. Its a precious moment. As a working mother I prayed I would be there to hear the first little words from those sweet lips. 

Big Girl was on the young side when she said her first word. 

It was Halloween morning. After she was born in the summer. She was in her car seat on the way to a party. She was in the back jabbering and giggling. I pulled up to a red light and stopped the car. When the car stopped she stopped talking. After a moment I checked the mirror and looked at her.

As I looked in the mirror she said, "go." I swear. Clear as day. Go.

I was pretty much astonished. Figured there was no way that my little baby actually said, "go" in a meaningful way. I figured it was just ironic. Humorous. But ironic. 

When we got to the party, I was getting her out of the car and told her that we were a little late, that her friends were already having fun. (As if she understood what that meant.) After I set up the stroller and snapped her car seat in she looked at me again. I checked the break on the stroller. Check. Dug through the diaper bag to make sure I had everything. Then I heard it again. "Go."

I remember it like it was yesterday. 

She was a tiny little thing that kept saying go. 

As I pushed the stroller into the party she said it two or three more times. When I walked faster she smiled and giggled. 

I tested her. When I stopped she said it again. 

Clear as freakin' day. 

No one believed me. So the next day she did it again for my dad. 

And. She hasn't stopped talking since. 

Words to Live By

You know how every once in a while you run across something you haven't seen or read in a while and you go, "Oh man. I gotta remember that." For me its usually a recipe or a craft that I really wanted to do, but somehow never found time for. Other times its a quote. 

In honor of our upcoming weekend at Windy Gap, here are six of my favorite Bible verses... okay, they aren't all Bible verses, but most of them are. 

Thinking back on each of these, I can't help but think of the impact they've had on my life. 

1. "As for me and my house, We shall serve the Lord." Joshua 24:15

This is one of my absolute favorites right now. It speaks to the family and remembering our priorities. I made a print of this verse for our sitter before she moved. I thought it was perfect for a housewarming. 

2. "Before I formed you in your mother's womb I chose you. Before you were born I set you apart." Jeremiah 1:5

When I found out I was pregnant with Big Girl I was scared. This verse was constantly in my mind during my pregnancy. Before I even knew if Big Girl was going to be a girl or I guy I loved her. I wanted to do everything I could do help her have a good life.

3. Enjoy the little things in life, for someday you will realize they were the big things.

I've been trying to live with this mindset for the last few months, and over the weekend saw this cute display at Windy Gap and had to get it. I'm loving looking at it on my dresser each morning.

4. "Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars for ever and ever." Daniel 12:3

Love. Love. Love it. Think about this at work and in my business life, but also when parenting my kids. Truly a phrase to live by.

5. Play Like A Girl. Beat the Boys.

Big Girl has a t-shirt that says this. She has been wearing it to play tennis. I love that this is both cute and empowering to girls. 

6. This one isn't a verse, but its a song. Step by Step by Rich Mullins.

"Oh God, You are my God And I will ever praise You Oh God, You are my God, And I will ever praise You. I will seek You in the morning, And I will learn to walk in Your ways, And step by step You'll lead me. And I will follow You all of my days ."

I remember this one from all the youth group adventures with my church friends growing up. We went to the beach for a retreat every summer, and one year we went to a national youth gathering in New Orleans (pre-Katrina).