What I Learned from Snapping a Picture

I took this picture the other night when I was exhausted and had little patience; but rather than raise my voice to remind my children how they were not being obedient, I took this picture. I’m so glad I did now. At first all I could see were 7 children NOT cleaning like I asked, folding chairs still needing to go down in the office, a birthday banner needing to come down, dishes in the sink, and a floor to be swept and vacuumed.

But now I see a different picture: 7 brothers playing because they genuinely like each other, evidence of a fun family gathering and days celebrating some of my favorite little people, and a few chores I do each night to create more peace in our home when we wake up.

As a mother of (many) children, my mind is constantly thinking 5 steps ahead and often times I get stuck in those steps and forget the people I’m doing it all for. I’m grateful for the few extra minutes I took coming back inside from taking out the garbage admiring the gorgeous sky. It allowed me to slow down and realize the boys DID clean pretty well, and they were all playing -no one was crying or fighting. These moments are intense and hard, but they are also good and beautiful if I take a moment and get out of my head to see the joy in my own home!