One of Those Days

Yesterday was one of those days where all the crazy was shaken up and poured out. The house was so messy and I felt like I had a million things started and nothing finished. Crumbs, laundry, toys...you name it, it was on the floors. A plastic Easter egg full of play dough was mysteriously empty and I had to call Poison Control because most likely Little Man had eaten it. (I knew it was nontoxic but this was a huge amount!). Then later that afternoon I found him in the laundry room eating coughing up lint from the dryer. While he finished up a snack of applesauce and yogurt, I attempted to get dinner made...only to turn and find much of it in his hair while his big sister G was drawing black marker "tiger stripes" all over her arms and hands. So we had an impromptu bath before dinner and ate soup without the homemade breadsticks I wanted to make. Oy! It was one of those days!

But today was too. One of those days where everything runs smoothly. I swept and mopped and vacuumed the floors while Little Man napped. Miss G had her first eye doctor appointment and behaved like a ten-year-old instead of two-year-old...I was so proud of her. We had a fun outing to the library with both kids and they happily ate the peanut butter sandwiches I packed for lunch on the way home in their carseats while I peacefully drove. They played (mostly) quietly together in the afternoon. I didn't even have to make dinner because I had put meatloaf and veggies in the crockpot before we left in the morning. I even caught some time for a cup of tea and a book. Ahhh. It was one of those days.

Tonight I drove to the Adoration Chapel for some prayer time while my husband watched the kids (I need to do this way more often than I do!). As I passed by the cemetery and prayed a quick prayer for the souls (#Catholic), I reflected on the past couple days and realized what a drop in the bucket "those days" are. How fleeting this life can be. How the people in those graves had crazy days and smooth days and days in between. But those days are gone now and they're in eternity. My own days are numbered too and those days are going fast. I don't mean this in a creepy way or sad way but in a sobering, slow-down-and-live, think-of-eternity way. Some days I can't believe I'm married with two kids who are growing so fast-- the single years seemed so long! It's easy for me to let my thoughts and emotions be affected by how each day unfolds, but when I step back and think about the bigger picture I want to be more steadfast. More unshaken by the circumstances of my days (good or bad!) and more focused on a faithful development of virtue and gratitude in the daily life.

One of these days, I'll wake up and realize my kids slept through the night (soon, Lord, soon! ha!). But one of these days, I won't get to cuddle with a footie-pajama'd baby in the wee hours of the morning. One of these days, I might be able to concentrate for a whole Mass without interruption or littles tugging on me. But one of these days, I'll miss seeing the precious way my toddler tries to genuflect like mommy and daddy do.

One of these days, they'll be grown up and out of the house, even though I can't imagine that now.

One of these days, a long time from now God-willing, my days on earth will come to and end and I hope I'll enter into eternity with God in heaven.

But for today, just for today, I'll live with gratitude for this amazing gift of life and all the people who share it with me. Even if it's one of those pour-out-the-crazy days.

We found the play-dough today, if you were wondering.