Ha! Got your attention with that title, didn’t I?
Because if there’s one word I don’t associate with the season of Advent, it’s bliss. Peaceful, maybe…and okay, frenzied, maybe…
But bliss? No. Uh-uh. No. The pressure I feel is just too great.
And the funny thing is, there’s pressure even to be peaceful! It’s like a competition, sometimes, between us moms. But that’s okay, right? We wouldn’t be good moms if we weren’t a bit (or a lot) competitive.
(Um…)
(You do kinda know what I mean, though, right?)
Here’s how I see my family room right now. It’s cozy, calm, and–dare I say it?–peaceful.
Here is how my children see our family room right now:
In other news, we have hot water again!
Isn’t she a beaut? The kids were thrilled to receive their Christmas present early.
Myself, I was so completely overwhelmed with emotion that I offered to marry the plumber on the spot. Alas, he’s already married and–woops–so am I!
Ha.
As it turns out, Mike the Plumber’s married to a different Maggie–a wonderful gal that I’ve known for years–and I must give a great big shout-out to his business, Justen Plumbing. He came on the Saturday after Thanksgiving; he came because he knew we were freezing.
Desperate women start their scarves on fire. I’m just sayin’.
In other, other news…
Francis has mastered the art of standing and stepping, and is now staggering all over the place like a little blonde zombie. When he’s not doing that, he’s emptying out my cupboards, which I really appreciate because putting away all those cans and things gives me something to do with my down time.
Rounding out this mish-mash of a post with a return to where I (think I) began…
Advent.
I really do like this time of year, although honestly? I have to fight to like it.
(We’re being honest, right? You like it when I’m honest, right?)
I have to fight tooth and nail to find peace during Advent because, frankly, I’m like the Grinch when it comes to all the noise, noise, noise, NOISE. I need to pull away from the noise, turn away from the noise, turn off the noise, sit in a chair, do nothing.
In short, I need to pray more often…
…and that is how I find my peace.
(The hot baths help too!)
(And lots and lots of candles.)
The noise makes me irritable too. And I get ornery because all the outside activities (i.e., sports) seem to take precedence over what really matters!
Did you see I put Lucy on Vocal Rest the day before Annie? Works great. So quiet. Found the same chocolate advent calendars at Walgreens. The "made in Poland" part sold me. We (I) am also encouraging peace and quiet during school hours. I wrote on the board "The world IN SILENCE waits the day."
LOL…I loved the comment on how you appreciate that Francis empties the cupboards for you as it gives you something to do in your down time. Too funny.
Lovely living room…I prefer your version, although my kids would prefer your kids' version!
God bless your Advent. Love your honesty!
I'm so glad you've got hot water back! I got a kick out of the different versions of your living room!
How did you get away with only getting one chocolate Advent calendar? We have them taped to all our cupboards…I'll post it tomorrow!
Yay for hot water! (and hot baths!)
Do you get to take a bath alone? (lucky if you do)
We had to buy a new washer and our transmission went out in our van. Yep. We are broke.
Just in time for Christmas.
Everything is good…Advent is sometimes chosen for us though.
fitting it all in, with so much competition out there…it's too hard. We are not doing it all.
Bartholomew's Passage–that daily reading chapter book was the first thing to go…And for our Jesse Tree, I just say things like "Here's Noah's Ark, you all know about that story, right?" In other words, I don't need to look up the verse in the bible, right?
We all do what we need to in order to survive this thing called Motherhood!
Love you Maggie!
Ok, that "something to do in my downtime" made me laugh so hard I startled the baby who was nursing. He then started fussing and I could not comment. I just had to come back and tell you it made me laugh all day. That Francis has such a great grin and little twinkle in his eyes – what a doll.
Oh and I am so glad that you have hot water again. How in the world did our Great Grandmothers make do without water heaters!
Ha! Love that little mischievous smile the little walker has going on. He knows what he's up to!