I feel like I just ran a marathon.......

just to get to the starting line.

I know from other moms, that it isn't an uncommon feeling to feel "behind". I often feel like I am constantly just trying to catch up...only to fall behind somewhere else. I may get all the laundry done. But the dishes are stacking up in the sink. Or I get the floors vacuumed and mopped. But the bathroom is disgusting. If you're a mom, you know the feeling.

But then there are days like I had today. Days where you get ALL CAUGHT UP! I don't even know how it happens. God gives me some amazing amount of energy and motivation...and suddenly the day is over and SO MUCH got accomplished.

Here is the "marathon" I completed today:
* 7 loads of laundry, folded and put away (load 8 is in the dryer and load 9 is in the washer)
* Clean sheets are back on the beds
* ALL dishes are done, dried, and put away
* Bathroom was cleaned...even the bathtub
* Vacuumed
* Mopped
* All trash has been taken out
* Table is wiped up
* Food is planned for tomorrow
* Babies got baths
* Kids got baths
* I showered and straightened my hair
And to top it all off, I made a homemade cherry crisp.

It feels SOO good to have everything "caught up" all at the SAME TIME! But the funny thing is, that even with everything caught up, I feel like I am just at the starting line. I find it almost IMPOSSIBLE to get AHEAD! But I'll take being where I'm at. It feels really good. It's such a relaxing feeling to feel like I have to try to THINK of things that need to be done.

The thing I am most excited about on days like these is the fact that Chip will get to come home to a peaceful place of rest. This is something that I'm not able to do everyday. I'm not able to do it most days, in fact. Usually, when he walks in the door there is still SOMETHING to be done. He understands this stage in life and he is never upset. But as a wife, I love it when my husband can walk into our home after a long day (and today was a VERY long 16 hour work day) and do nothing but put up his feet and unwind. And the even better part is that I'm able to sit down WITH him and just enjoy his company.

I wish I were able to have more days like today. It is something I need to work on. I know many people will say that it isn't realistic to put that type of pressure on myself and that Chip understands. And this is true to some extent. There are days when I will give it my all and be doing my best and there will still be dirty dishes, piles of laundry, and toys everywhere. And that's ok.

But there are also days when I am just lazy and selfish. There are days when I could very easily get everything done and provide the peaceful resting place for my husband. But I choose to put myself and my desires above everyone else. The world tries to tell us that this is ok. That we somehow "deserve" to be lazy sometimes. And while I agree that it is ok to rest and that we need to prioritize and that sometimes a nap is more important than the housework, I also think that I start to allow the world's way of thinking to creep in sometimes and I use it to justify behaviors that are not ok.

And so. I will work on it.

I won't be perfect.

But I am excited to work on being the wife and mother and woman that God has created me to be. I am excited to have more days like today, where I chose to get up off my butt and get things done, to serve my family with a joyful heart.

The most amazing part of it all, is that God is gracious enough to give a HUGE sense of accomplishment and satisfaction when we live in the way He has called us to live. The days that I indulge my own desires...the days I sit and watch TV or waste time on Facebook before getting things done that I need to do end in feelings of frustration and failure and disappointment in myself. Today, I worked hard and I did what I needed to do. And I feel great. Am I tired? Yes. But I'm tired at the end of days when I DON'T get things done too. At least tonight when I crawl in between the nice clean sheets I won't lay in bed trying to fall asleep while I think of everything that I never got around to doing today.