Where have I been all week?
Here:
Pretty Lake (Wolcotville, Indiana.)
Before you get too jealous, remember that I had my kids with me :)
And that even the peaceful-looking picture above is only peaceful because there is no audio track.
It was no quiet desert island, but it was fun!
My mess this week: post-vacation aftermath.
Here's a glimpse:
The van
(after almost 4 hours)
(remember this is only the mess under 2 seats...)
The van
with labels
(Do you have an emergency car box? You should.
Come back later this week and I'll tell you what's in mine!)
My to-do list.
unpack.
wash.
put stuff back where it goes.
(Or, ignore it, put on a movie, and blog.)
The kitchen
(sigh)
I sighed at first,
seeing only the lack of work space and the things that need to be put away
and quickly, because these little people are horrible about demanding THREE meals a day.
Sigh.
But then...
Literally, as I was unloading the van,
a dear friend dropped off some food.
(party leftovers. I love this pastor's family perk!)
Those metal pans, all four of them, contain surprise blessings
the kids' favorite: cake
and my favorites: macaroni and cheese and mashed potatoes
and my son's favorites: burgers.
God provided dinner to remind me that He cares for me, right in the middle of the vacation aftermath.
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What picture above is your favorite?
How do you cope with vacation aftermath and living in chaos?
I'd love to hear from you!
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(This will be second-to-last messy link-up for at least a month- One more next Monday, then I'm moving on to other ideas! Send me your pictures now so you don't miss the fun!)
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My favorite pic: the picture of the inside of your van. Sometimes I think Scott believes that my suburban is the only messy vehicle in the world. This picture made me feel so not alone!!!!
ReplyDeleteso take even more comfort in knowing that I could have shown you much worse... especially after the trip to Florida when the stomach flu hit!
Deletemy son and my husband both think "we should have a rule- no eating in the van!" because they have had to shop vac. WELL, I say, they have also not had to manage children ALL DAY long... they do not realize what a blessing it is to have the torture of mealtime done and over with while driving! :)
I should say the peaceful waters is a favorite. And it's beautiful. The kitchen is my absolute favorite. I broke out in a wide grin that my hubby asked "what's so funny?" To which I answered, "Another woman's messy kitchen" and he said, "Women are weird." It did my heart Good to see it. But I think the one before started settling into first place.
ReplyDeleteWe had a wedding in the family, my son married his high school sweetheart who has no family. She grew up in foster care. She sunk into my heart as deeply as any birthed child. So at this wedding I was the mother of the groom and mother of the bride too. Which translated into running my backside off coming and going. So your front porch with the suitcase, the crates, the boxes...the wedding was 4/30 and my home still has boxes, crates and wedding stuff sitting around. I hate it. I started an intrusive medical treatment the very next day after the wedding. My ability to move or lift was seriously altered. So many things look the same as it did 5/1.
But your front porch said to me...Something big and exciting happened here. I looked around my home and said...you know what "something big and exciting is happening here too." I'm going to relax and keep plugging away at it. I'm having surgery next week - I have to. But I'm not going to get bent about the boxes, crates and wedding stuff. I am gonna work on my kitchen. Bless you for your transparency though, it's not easy to that as a parsonage family with 6 children. :)
"Something big and exciting happened here."
DeleteI carried those words with me yesterday as I unpacked and cleaned. You helped me have a better attitude about the whole (messy) situation! Thank you so much!
Prayers for you as you recover from botht eh wedding and the medical treatment- may God give you peace as you let go of the things that simply will not get done right now, while you heal adn recover. Remember, God commands us to rest, not because our work is done, but because He created us to have a need for it!
Now, I"m off to make a yard sign- "Something big and exciting IS happening here" in hopes of gaining forgiveness and understanding for the constant mess of raising six kids! :)
(not really making the sign- but that would be funny!)
Ack. The car ones always get me. You MUST have food, drinks, and fun in the car on vacay, but they MUST spill all over the place. It's a natural law of travel with children.
ReplyDeletea natural law of travel, indeed! LOL!
DeleteOh my goodness, did I see a Pack-n-Play waiting to be taken into the house?! The front porch photo brings back memories. The pack-n-play, the diaper box(es), the diaper bag, the box full of baby food, the boxes and crates full of toys...and the inevitable sigh of "overwhelmanation" (I made that word up! Pretty good, huh?) of having to unpack it all. I love family vacations though. They are such special times, full of opportunities for memory making.
ReplyDeleteWelcome home!
(I too love the perks that come with being a pastor's family!)
Yes, the pack n play will be with us for a little while longer yet! (My youngest is 19 months! He's actually in a big boy bed at home but I don't trust him on vacation!)
DeleteOverwhelmanation is a great word. Almost sounds and feels like a swear word- hence, it is fitting! :)
:0)...I enjoyed all of your photos :0). They brought back a lot of memories for me. Having 4 children we have definitely had our share of van rides...complete with the all you can eat "floor buffet"! The kids are now 14,15,18,20 so this latest trip of ours did not incur such "messies" but still enough from 2 vehicles to fill a Wal-Mart bag. I know I miss them being young...but I do not miss all the "stuff" that goes along with younger kids. Enjoy your precious family! I hopped on over from FB Better Writer :0).
ReplyDelete"all you can eat floor buffet!" I love it!!! It is always so disgusting when they find something from a few days ago. I do wish they made 15 passenger vans that could be hosed down inside!
DeleteThanks for coming by Donna! I am new to Better Writer but I think i am going to love the community!
Emily
This reminds me of the time we rented an RV and drove to Washington DC with several stops along the way. It was an AWESOME trip but eight people in an RV gets a little crowded...and a little MESSY. Especially when the girls took their beading supplies along and they were spilled no less than FIVE TIMES. Chasing beads across the floor of a moving RV can be a little tricky! We found beads everywhere for weeks! LOL The van with labels is my fav! :)
ReplyDeleteUGH beads!? When my kids get beads as gifts (I would NEVER buy them) I tend to hide them. They overwhelm me, especially with the littles around! I suppose I will outgrow that someday. That, or they will learn to smuggle the bead crafts carefully!
DeleteThis is really sweet. I loathe the part when we come home after a trip--so much mess and so much work to unpack! I also just took time this week to clean out the minivan--ugh, what a chore! Anyway, just like God showed you he cared for you through the food your friend brought, he caring for me through this post by letting me know I'm not alone in these unsavory tasks!
ReplyDeleteI HATE cleaning the van. That's probably why I rarely do it. I taught my 6yr old son to shop vac last month and he said, "MOMMY. I think we need a rule. NO eating in the van." What a guy. I"m sure he'd made an exception the next time he got hungry!
DeleteThank you for your comment and your sweet words! I enjoy making people feel better about their own messy lives, haha!
Uggh I shudder at the thought of what two days from now holds for me. We are going to the mountains for a couple days. I hate the packing and unpacking of vacations.
ReplyDeletewww.adventureswithcaptaindestructo.com