miss the mess

I just had one of those insane realizations of how quickly time passes as I went in to spy on my sleeping babes.  They are so long when they're still, and it hit me full force tonight how big they have gotten. And plus, oh my stars, there is nothing more beautifully precious than a sleeping child. All the feels are workin tonight. 

A dear friend and I were visiting at lunch yesterday, and I was lamenting about keeping my house clean, specifically the floors. And with a kid who puts every single thing into his mouth, the floors is the thing that needs to be cleaned the most!  Anywho, this precious friend of mine just moved her youngest into the dorms a few weeks ago and has been living the empty nest for a while. Her very quick response to my grief (ok I was whining. Let's call a spade a spade.) was this...ya know, my house stays clean now, but oh how I miss the mess. And the reason for the mess. 

I appreciated her words that afternoon, but tonight they were actually heard in my heart. 

So my floors will stay filthy. And my car and my living room and my life will stay crowded with toys. And I will have silly dance parties and read the same book repeatedly and watch all the cartoons.  I will let her help me cook and I will let him give me slobbery kisses. I won't stress when they spill or take all of the toys out of the bins or splash water out of the tub. 

Because sooner than I can imagine, I'll be moving those sleeping souls into their own dorm rooms...and I'm going to miss the mess. 

xoxo, angie