It has been a particularly challenging day. It is only noon and I think I need another triple shot latte. My kids run around like they have had a six pack of lattes and I can barely put one foot in front of the other.
I had a few extra dollars so I told the kids that I would take them to pick out a small toy they both wanted. My daughter asked me 18 times if it was time to go before I had even gotten in the shower. I asked my kids if they could keep it together while I was in the shower. Of course they answered, "yes mommy" so sweetly that I am duped every time. You would think that I would have learned after 5 years that sibling preschoolers can't be left for 5 minutes peacefully.
I always look forward to my morning shower. Correction. I always look forward to my shower that usually happens before 6 p.m. Okay, you got me. I always look forward to the days that I actually get to shower. I found some shave gel that doubles as aromatherapy. Of course I purchased the citrus energizing scent. Maybe it was just the bottle that I got, but I never feel energized after my shower and now that I think about it I don't really even recognize a citrus scent. My shower is usually interrupted by screaming or crying when my hair is full of shampoo. I rip back the curtain and yell, "What is going on?" The answer always comes as I have leaned back into the shower to rinse out the soap that is now stinging my eyes. One of my kids ends up coming into the bathroom to tattle on the other. The shower curtain gets held back while I am caught up on the goings on and then I end up trying to wash my face and shave my legs (with the serenity shave gel) at high speeds so I can solve the problem. My bedroom carpet is almost always wet because I have to walk right from the shower to the kid's room to bring peace. I often wonder if my kids really take me seriously with hair dripping, nicks on my legs bleeding and a towel on. Maybe my scary appearance is what convinces them to get along. Who knows.
After I have gotten ready, 3 rounds of argument intervention later, we get into the car. My son has stinky diapers and my daughter has helped him put his shoes on. This means they are on the wrong feet and I have to convince my son that I need to take his shoes off and put them on the right feet. It probably isn't worth the fight. After clean pants, hands washed and herding them into the garage we are ready to go.
Yeah. We made it into the car and to the store. We made our purchase without a hitch. I wouldn't let them open the toys in the car because that would ruin 30 minutes of uninterrupted time for me when we got home. I don't know if it was worth the headache of hearing, "Can we open them now" a hundred times on the way home. Nevertheless we made it there. My son again had stinky pants so I sent him and my daughter into the house while I grabbed some things from the car. By the time I made it in, my daughter was gagging on the stairs and my son was standing in the hallway with hands covered in...should I tell you?? I remember a scene from the movie Madagascar where one monkey said to the other, "If you have any poo, fling it now." So my son thought he was monkey. This is the most disgusting, shocking, appetite ruining thing that I have ever had to deal with as a mom. How do you go about cleaning that up??
Many sprays of lysol and a bottle of anti-bacterial soap later, we have become clean again. 2 Corinthians 7:1 in the NLT says, "Because we have these promises, dear friends, let us cleanse ourselves from everything that can defile our body or spirit. And let us work toward complete holiness because we fear God." I am so sure that I have appeared to God the way my son appeared to me. He was completely shocked with himself and frozen in time because he did not know what to do with the mess he had made. What my son did is definitely gross, but my sin has a similar stench. I long for complete holiness. My deepest desire is maturity in Christ. Seeing my son in his mess today reminded me of how much I want to avoid those things that have become habitual sins in my life. I don't want my heavenly daddy to see me like that. Help me Lord, to "work toward complete holiness." Sometimes I am paralyzed and don't know how to move forward, but you Oh God, can gently restore me and remind me of the yucky consequences of disobedience the next time I am tempted to dabble in the dirty.
No comments:
Post a Comment