Don't loose the Memories in the Madness!

Life is so hectic, and some days it feels like I am in my own version of Groundhog Day.  Any of you ever seen that movie?  Where the guy wakes up and repeats the same day over and over and over and over and, well you get it.  That's how I feel sometimes... I pick up a mess, just to turn around and pick it up again.  I wash clothes just to have to wash them again.  I wash dishes, turn around and the sink is full again!  One day after my husband and I put the kids to bed we came back downstairs and sat at the bottom of the stairs and looked around at the mess.  And I said just that, "look at this mess!"  Feeling very tired, and already knowing I wasn't going to be able to do another thing that night, I just sat staring around the room.  As we sat in silence for a moment something changed, and I started seeing everything in a whole new light.  Tears came to my eyes, as I began to tell my husband, "You know what, this room is a mess, but it's our life."  I went on to point out things in the room... The cars on the floor that brought to me an image of my son's happy face as he raced them earlier in the day.  The food smeared on the table reminded me of the silly conversations we had over dinner that night.  My husbands shoes abandoned by the door made me smile as I could still hear the kids laughter and cheers in my mind as their daddy came home from work.  There were so many things that I saw when I looked around the room that second time, and none of them made me think, "this is a mess."  All I felt at that moment was gratitude.  Gratitude for the sweet family I have been blessed with, and the time I've been given to spend with them each day (no matter how chaotic).  I thought about how quickly these first few years of motherhood have gone by, and I know that one day I will wake up to a calm, quiet house that is very tidy and organized because my babies will be grown.  But I will always hang on to these moments with them, and I will cherish this mess, for in it our memories are made.