Good, glorious Monday morning! I've been up earlier than usual for us. Actually, this used to be the normal rising time, but since moving to Canada our mornings have been far less hectic.
We have beautiful spring weather, and hopefully, our April showers have abated enough for May flowers! Yesterday each of my three older daughters called to wish me a Happy Mother's Day. Sure was nice to chat with them. I spent yesterday just relaxing with a good book and being pampered by Tom and our youngest two. They surprised me with a new set of golf clubs so we also enjoyed hitting a bucket of balls at a local driving range.
Today everything goes back to normal, and actually into hyperdrive as we begin preparing for an early Wednesday take off back to Houston. Our oldest daughter will receive her BA from the University of St. Thomas on Saturday. We are about to cross the threshold of a new era ... watching our successfully homeschooled children blossom into University graduates.
Now to the reason for my post. Last Thursday I attended a meeting of mothers with young children. So far I've been to two different homes with this group, and quite frankly, I am appalled by what I have seen. I look back on my helter skelter years with little ones, and I can quite honestly say that our home, while in chaos, did not approach the sloth that these two homes had. Don't get me wrong, the women are wonderful mothers. But they are definitely suffering from a failure to look and act in their homes.
I can completely connect with the turmoil that really can happen when you have a little baby born, especially in the early months. But, both these moms have older children who can, and really should be helping out.
The reason for this post was an excuse one of the moms gave. She said this in such a serious voice, that I came to realize this was her pat excuse for not just attending to what needed to be attended to. "I'm not a neat freak because my mom was one." That is it. What a lame excuse.
So, you would rather your family live in utter chaos by living out a rebellion against a woman who doesn't even visit your home?
Come on. Girls, if you are falling for this just stop it right now. You are laying the groundwork for a lifetime of chaos and loss for your own children while trying to explain away why you don't desire a better life.
The first thing I did see when coming into these homes was a definite overabundance. Too many toys, too many stacks, too many ... you fill in the blank. Living a simpler life does entail stopping the access to your home of more stuff. Mostly stuff you don't need. These beautiful moms want to share in their overabundance, so often pass bags of clothing back and forth. That is, when they can get a bag of stuff together. Or if they actually unpack the last bag dropped off by well meaning friends.
So, what to do? Well, first of all, stop making excuses for yourself and your home. If you have: 1) paid one too many bills late because you lost the statement
2) have no clean clothes for your kids to wear and have resorted to doing a sniff test to find something to get them out the door
3) throw away more good food than you eat
4) feel ashamed because company can't come over (or worse, feel no discomfort in your mess)
5) have not a clean space in any square foot of your home
.... please realize that you need help.
But, also, stop making excuses. Families really do function better when they have less stuff, when they know where to locate items.
More on this later. Right now we have our enrichment co-op to get ready to attend.
Until then I remain,
Your Sister in the Trinity,
Yvonne
