I can't remember the last time I made my kids a heart-shaped egg. Or did a crafty art project with a St. Patrick's Day theme. At the most, I might stir a little green coloring into my my children's scrambled eggs on March 17th. And if I'm really feeling creative, I just might do Mickey Mouse pancakes. If they're lucky.
How boring, right? We have cute dinosaur sandwich cutters, but I utterly hate the thought of the waste (scraps). So we hardly ever use them.
Don't panic though...I make Christmas sugar cookies with my boys. And I am usually (just) organized enough to make Resurrection cookies for Easter morning. We have discussed Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and what he stood for. But the rest of it is beyond me. For Valentine's Day, St. Patrick's, and the rest of it, I'm a big loser of a mom.
Because to be honest, you've gotta pick & choose. As mothers, we absolutely cannot do it all. As much as I would like to, I can't. Maybe in a few years I'll be able to pick up those loose threads, gather a bunch of creative ideas from Pinterest, and go for it. But for the time being, it just ain't happening.
So, what did we do today? Well, I'd toyed with the idea of pink pancakes, but once I realized that Valentine's fell on a Tuesday this year, I knew they were an impossibility - we had to be out the door by 8:45 AM, after all. (Isn't it a good thing I homeschool my children, and don't have to be organized enough to actually leave the house every day??) Instead, we had leftover french toast and cheese omeletes. After Bible study, we did a math review page, emptied the dishwasher, and had lunch.
In the afternoon, I made my weekly double batch of kombucha, fed my baby, called my dad, and snuggled my little girl, who's feeling a mite under the weather. I did a load of laundry, convinced my daughter to exercise with me (which is nearly as fun as cuddling, right?), and prepared dinner to serve my boys before they head off to Awana.
I suppose that, in many ways, it's just another ordinary day.
But at the risk of oversimplifying, I think that today was still about love, even if it wasn't filled with hearts and candy. It was full of work, effort, and cuddles. It was another day, another labor of love.
Perhaps that's a justification. But it's what I'm hanging my hat on right now. That making (regular, boring) sandwiches and changing diapers, washing sheets and wiping faces, matters as much as pink pancakes and heart-shaped cookies. Maybe even more.
So really, what does it matter if I don't jazz things up for Valentine's Day? I have children who love me, need me. I have a husband who shows me with actions as well as words, on a daily basis, that our relationship, and my heart, are priorities to him.
That's not too shabby for any day of the year. Even February 14th.
5 comments:
You do so much already, I know your kids have an awesome mom and they won't hold it against you :) And besides, the minor holidays are kinda lame imo. Yep, that includes today. I'd rather have my hubby and kids tell me they love me on some random day, on their own whim than just because Hallmark said so. That's my two cents.
Blessings,
Mel
Please feel free to stop by: Trailing After God
I happen to love valentines (despite all the flaws, I'm a sucker for luv... ;) but I'm horrible at Christmas... So, I know exactly what you mean. Love this post.
Paige - For the most part, I like Valentine's Day too... at least the part that relates to my husband. But I feel so much pressure to do all those fun, crafty things with the kids, and that's where I totally fall down. Ah well...
Mindy, I did something very simple this year and my girls LOVED it....I covered our dining room table with white paper. Then Kevin and I wrote messages of love to each girl. Kevin wrote out a math puzzle for them to solve and I wrote out Bible verses about love. When the girls woke up and saw it, they began adding to it and continued to write their own love messages to each other and us and draw pictures.
It was simple, fun and memorable!
Mindy, you really do do so much already. I'm in awe of all the research you did in finding out about natural foods and implementing healthy eating into your family's lifestyle. Your children are obviously well-loved and growing in spirit and body each day. I think you have done an amazing job of building on your strengths and you should be proud! Maybe if some day if your kids express an interest in crafty things, you can hand them some supplies and say Go for it!
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