Snow Day!!

“Babies Don’t Keep”

Mother, O Mother, come shake out your cloth,
Empty the dustpan, poison the moth,
Hang out the washing, make up the bed,
Sew on a button and butter the bread.

Where is the mother whose house is so shocking?
She’s up in the nursery, blissfully rocking.

Oh, I’ve grown as shiftless as Little Boy Blue,
Lullabye, rockabye, lullabye loo.
Dishes are waiting and bills are past due
Pat-a-cake, darling, and peek, peekaboo

The shopping’s not done and there’s nothing for stew
And out in the yard there’s a hullabaloo
But I’m playing Kanga and this is my Roo
Look! Aren’t his eyes the most wonderful hue?
Lullabye, rockaby lullabye loo.

The cleaning and scrubbing can wait till tomorrow
But children grow up as I’ve learned to my sorrow.
So quiet down cobwebs; Dust go to sleep!
I’m rocking my baby and babies don’t keep.
~ Ruth Hulburt Hamilton ~

I have always loved this poem. I have kept it close to my heart since becoming a mom, thankful for its reminder to slow down in a world that is always so very busy.

I had a million and one things to do today, pay bills, clean the house that is so ridiculously messy from being on the go the entire weekend. I had errands to run and people to see. But one little announcement changed all of that. SNOW DAY!!

At first I was super excited, McGees very first snow day! Yay!! All three of my babies are off and all mine just like “the old days” (for those of you who don’t know my family, my son started Kindergarten this fall and this Mama took it hard!!) So naturally I was thrilled to have him home. All the kids piled in my bed this morning and snuggled while watching cartoons for a bit and it was blissful. They all eventually got restless and hungry so we made our way downstairs. The minute my feet hit the kitchen floor and I looked around and all of my excitement was drained.

“Ugh. I have so much to do and it’s only going to be harder to do with another kid home, plus there’s no way I am going out in this weather” was running through my head.. My attitude turned and I immediately felt stressed. As we sat down to breakfast my mind was everywhere else except where it should have been, listening to my sweet babies all chatter about what they wanted to do today and all the adventures of last nights Super Bowl party. My thoughts were broken by two little boys hopping up and down asking “Can we have hot chocolate with breakfast since it’s a special day?!!” A special day.That’s what this was to them wasnt it? How quickly I had lost sight of that. A day when two brothers get to play (and fight) all day long with nowhere to go and no one to see except us, and that was special to them. And really it was special to me too before I walked downstairs and saw the huge mess glaring back at me.

So I agreed to the hot chocolate. McGee hugged me and said “I love Mama days”, with a huge smile covering his face. He used to tell me that all of the time when he was little. He loved just being with me, and doing “our thing” together. It reminded me of the poem above. I used to always read that to remind myself to slow down and enjoy the moment. And even though I technically only have one baby right now, in my heart I will always have three. No matter how old my children get, they will always be my babies. So today I am setting aside the to do list, and making it a great Mamas day. As the poem says:

“So quiet down cobwebs; Dust go to sleep! I’m rocking my baby and babies don’t keep.”

And although I may have exchanged rocking for building blocks and playing dinosaurs and tea parties these days, it is all really the same. Its time spent being in the moment, and savoring those minutes of them just simply being little. I know in my heart that one day I will sit in my perfectly clean home and wish for one more mess. One more time of hearing those little feet run around the corner, or that bucket of toys being scattered all over the floor.
So instead of worrying about a nice clean house today, I have this in the middle of my family room:

And instead of errands being run and a list being checked off, we are snuggled inside playing “battle” with Legos and having hot chocolate at breakfast. Instead of paying bills.. Well okay, those are still getting paid, just as the mess will eventually be picked up. But you get the point.

For today, I will find contentment within my mess. I am going to soak in those little giggles and animal noises, and their wild imaginations. After all today is a special day.