A Joyful Mother of Children

Spring Break came at just the right time this year.  It was time for a breather, but I was scared of the equation Spring Break presented:  Kids + time = chaos.  Despite my misgivings, Spring Break 2010 was fun, awesome, restorative and relaxing, and it went by too, too quickly.  Now my calendar says it's time to get back to work, and it doesn't give me a break until June 4th, the last day of school.  That's eight weeks that I know from experience will start to feel like the inside of a tornado, spiraling faster and faster and sucking up everything in their path until another school year is history.  I don't want the school year to end, and I really want it all to go smoothly, and to enjoy it. 

I really lucked out when I grabbed this book 10 minutes before the library closed on the night of our office sleepover.  When I turned the last page of the book, I almost flipped right back to the first page to read it again.  A Joyful Mother of Children, by Linda J. Eyre.  Every page of it inspired me and made me laugh and/or cry.  Mostly, it motivated me to set some goals for our family.  I expected my kids to roll their eyes today when I announced five-minute Mom Meetings I wanted to have with each child individually.  With no argument, they all eagerly awaited their turn outside Araceli's bedroom door.  I started to wonder if they felt so neglected, the promise of five minutes of attention was manna from heaven!  With each child, we talked about and set three goals for the week; a spiritual goal, an academic goal and a family goal.  I asked each one the question, "What bothers you the most about this family?"  Freestone's response was, "Hard video games."  I'm not sure how to make video game time easier for Freestone, but from their answers and goals, I'm thinking of things Scott and I can do to make things run more smoothly.

Even if this plan only gets me through breakfast tomorrow, it's better than NOT getting through breakfast tomorrow!  Any mom who needs fuel will love this book.  More important than the goals and rethinking is the hope and inspiration it offers me as we enter the final stretches of the school year.  We're adding up to 6 play practices a week, baseball games, testing and looming deadlines, but I feel like it's all going to be just fine.  More than fine.  It's going to be a wild ride and I'm thankful to have a season pass for the adventure.