Does anyone have any Febreez???

It’s Monday night and I’m at church. Why, you ask? It seems Scamp was fortunate enough to arrive in town in time for the annual Kid’s Festival. So far, it’s going great and fun is being had by all. Do you ever wonder if God ever has Kid’s Festivals or do you think when He created this world His intention was for it to be one big festival? Stop for a minute and think about the garden of Eden; no dishes to be washed, no homework, no unmade beds, no cooking, not even any laundry! Right about now that’s sounding pretty much like a festival to me!

Kids continue to fascinate me. The other night Scamp, whose 5, was enthralled with watching a large spider spin a web. His dad, being a great dad, was explaining how it works, how the spider manages such a feat, what the purpose of the web is and other such fatherly things. I was thinking, as I listened, “what a wonderful teaching moment! What a great opportunity to talk to him about the wonders of God’s creation and how miraculously He has created all things!” I knew I was slightly off the mark when Scamp turns to his dad and says, “then why doesn’t Spiderman’s web come out his backside?”. How can you answer that? Really? Just what is the correct response to a statement like that? It never fails, when things are a little stressful, Scamp will say something that will shock and amuse me. Sometimes it’s like living with 3-D cartoon!

So, I find myself sitting in the church fellowship hall alone tonight. The kids are all having their fun, but I am craving a little solitude, a little time to shut out the world and center myself again. In a household of 5 guys, there is very little privacy. No matter what I do I cannot seem to put a stop to things such as belching contests during dinner, battle re-enactments in the living room, numerous name calling, and the desire and attempts to beat each other into submission through various wrestling moves. Sure, it’s all in good fun in the end, but it’s in the middle that just might get me! The funky boy smell alone sometimes is enough to stagger a horse. Right now I’m almost sure you could find a bathroom in my house that would rival any bathroom at any truck stop. I know the saying; “boys will be boys!” I live with it on a daily basis.

I learned a very important lesson early on in raising my boys. I cannot, no matter how hard I try, turn them into girls. I remember a time when they were 3,4,5 and 8 and the level of chaos seemed insurmountable. I just couldn’t understand why they had no interest in sitting and playing quietly. I didn’t ask them to play with dolls or any other such “girly” toys. I bought them trucks, I bought building blocks, I bought hot wheels and trains and construction sets. Did they sit and play nicely?? Nooooo! We had to use the construction sets to build cities with the blocks so the hot wheels, trucks and trains could crash through and destroy them. I realized one day, I was expecting them to act like girls. Being one myself, I can hardly be blamed for that little lapse, it’s in my genes. Once I relaxed and allowed the boys to be boys a lot of the stress faded, or at least some of it faded. It’s always stressful to find the cat in the dryer and peanut butter in the vcr. So began my journey into the world of little boys, of rocks and trees, of trains and leggos, of comic books and video games, of skinned knees and broken bones. But it has not been a journey without reward. There are no kisses on the planet to rival the kisses of an 8 year old boy, slightly sweaty, more than slightly dirty, smelling of pond water, wet dog and little green apples. They are given with an openness of heart found nowhere else on the planet. I may never be the mother of the bride, I may never plan a wedding, I may always have to have my nails and hair done alone, but I am the queen of my castle with a house full of loyal, if slightly smelly subjects and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Gotta run now, the bathroom needs cleaning. You do not want to know why!

Soaked in His blessings,
Spokenfor