The Catmulls

Ever wondered this? I am sitting here in the office listening to Britta cry in her bed because in the five minutes it took me to read Britta a bedtime story Kendyll has cut her last year's dance picture into tiny little pieces with the scissors of course that Britta took from my cupboard and left in my room. Dinner isn't all the way cleaned up yet, there are three loads of laundry on my bed that need to be folded, I changed at least twelve diapers today, wiped the table six times, loaded the dishwasher twice, unloaded the dishwasher twice, took out the garbage twice, mopped the floor for the third time this week, cleaned caked on toothpaste out of the sinks in the kids bathroom, mopped up water off the bathroom floor twice after showers and baths, swept the kitchen floor twice, made cookies, had to unpreheat the oven and clean it out because I forgot about the butter that spilled from the breadsticks on Sunday, made dinner twice, once for someone else and once for our family, I went to the grocery store today and realized that I just have to go back again tomorrow because even though I made the list I still didn't pick up everything I needed, completed a worksheet of first grade math (that in and of itself is a feat), went to a soccer game, bathed three girls, clipped and polished their nails, set them off to bed and here at 9:30 p.m. Jackson and Shawn are still going strong on the Pinewood Derby car and he still needs to read for thirty minutes, shower and be tucked in, which is a process.
I am wondering why it is that I do not weight 100 pounds, because it feels like life never stops. Being a mom is exhausting, I am sure you all can relate.

Sometimes I take pause and wonder how the heck this happened and I find myself asking the question "Who are these kids and Why are they calling me Mom?" I ask this first of all because it seems like yesterday I was a kid myself and second because how can I possibly be up to the task of raising four kids... and earning the great title of Mom. Britta said today that when she grows up she is going to be a great mom, I asked her if I was a great mom and she said "Yeah, mostly you are a great mom." I think it is amazing how kids overlook your faults so quickly and forgive and forget. We will be out of town on Mother's day with our two oldest and I will miss spending it with Britta, Kendyll and of course with my Mom and my sisters. For me Mother's day has always been kind of a day of reflection. There is so much to be thankful for when you are a mother, and also quite a bit of time to wonder what in the crap happened to my life? Nevertheless I would not trade it for the world. So I will now tear myself away from the solace of my office and keyboard, and clean up dinner, fold the laundry on my bed, and take a minute to look at my sweet, quiet, sleeping children before I collapse into a deep slumber only to awake and do it all again tomorrow.