The children all finished their dinner before me, of course. After trying very hard to ask nicely to be excused, they all hopped off to play for ten more minutes before bath. Why they couldn't all play nicely together while I was trying to cook, I don't know. But now as I sit at the table alone and hear their sweet little excited voices chattering happily in the other room, I get a deep sense of joy and sadness knowing this time is going to end much too soon. I will be sitting alone at the table all the time before I know it. My children grown and moved out and me here dreaming of these days where I couldn't get dinner ready on time because I was having to stop and referee multiple fights or change a diaper or had a little one under my feet wanting to be held. In all this insanity I call home, I am finally at a place of realizing how much I love this crazy. That I am called to this place and these children and these dogs for this. I am being sharpened into the image of Christ by this circus of family and I wouldn't trade it for anything. Although some days I think I might. On those days I just sing to myself the Alan Jackson song "you're gonna miss this". Hang in their mommy. We will miss this and we will be better for it on the other side.
