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In a rare feat, we had dinner done AND cleaned up by 6:00 last night. Actually, we cooked, and I cleaned. Proud moment for this whack-a-mole mom.
And whacking moles is about what every day is for me.
"Mom, where's ______?" Whack (the mole, not the child).
Fix this, answer that. Whack, whack.
Nasty bathroom scuzz. Whack.
Pull a few weeds. Whack.
Answer email. Whack.
Put away the trails around the house. Whack. Mental note to follow up on making the children do their own whacking.
Take children to ______. Gas station. Post office. Bank. Drugstore. Donut and coffee shop (for Mommy). Pick up children from ______. Whack, whack, whack, whack, whack, yumm-o, whack.
Who left cheese wrappers out... again? Actually, in my house, I know who that usually is. It's that person's signature marking. Whack. Mental note to work on, yet again, cleaning up one's trails.
Is this sock clean or dirty? Not sniffing. It's just automatically dirty. Start laundry. Whack.
To office. Print this. Print that. Follow up on ______. Whack. Whack. Whack.
Oh, yes, the kids need to write thank you notes for ______. Pull out the cards. Write a Post-It note reminding them to do such. Stick it on the table. Whack. Whack.
Orthodontist calls. Teleconference. Gulp. Whack.
Bunny, your box is stinky. Let's change that. Whack. Big whack.
Water the pathetic houseplants that are clinging to dear life. Whack.
Don't forget to drink enough water so I'm doing more than clinging to dear life. Whack.
What's for dinner? It's 5:00 already. Ummm... Freezer pizza, anyone? Whack.
The cars need to be cleaned. Remember to whack.
One car needs an oil change. Also remember to whack.
Sweep the floor--for the fourth time in one day. Whack.
Make that list (lovely list) of all the other moles to whack.
There's more to life than whacking moles, though. It fills a large part of each day, and my mind, but I really am trying to remember to enjoy some life.
I sat out in my car for 10 minutes or so yesterday as I was waiting for the children to finish up their youth group.
Just when I pulled out my phone to start messing around on it, I thought to put that away and just enjoy the scenery. There was a playful dog leaping and running around a fenced-in yard not far away. I loved seeing his zest for life.
Soon after, 4 more dogs came out of that house. Two dogs looked like spectators, while the other 3 were having a playful go at one another.
I took a few minutes just to enjoy watching them in the quiet and stillness of my car.
I also gave thanks that I wasn't having to clean up the poo from 5 dogs at my house.
A few moments watching dogs isn't necessarily life-altering, but remembering to put down the frenzied stick I use to whack moles all the time and enjoy my surroundings actually can be life-altering.