Those Moments...

Today marks week 3 of living in our house... and tomorrow it'll be 3 weeks since our "stuff"... 3 shipments worth of household goods, arrived. It has been a long 3 weeks of unpacking and organizing, and we still have TONS to do. Just when we think one room is near done, we turn around and there's more... and more... and more... And trust me, some rooms take more time than I'd really like...

I've been thinking a lot about this move... and have wondered why this moving in and organizing has taken as much time as we would like... and it all comes down to a few realizations. First, this is the first move we've ever done with kids... we adopted Charlotte while in Korea, and I never realized how much of my "free" time is spent playing with her, and watching out for her, when before Charlotte... I would organize and unpack. Secondly, I'm pregnant... and while I'm trying not to let that hinder me from getting things done, I move at a much slower pace. It's amazing how all the twisting and turning and lifting and pulling, etc. takes a toll on my body. I've been having some serious growing pains in the belly area, and it's only worse if I have a massively productive day.

But all in all, what these things have brought to mind, is how important it is to take the time out for family... When Charlotte asks to read a book, read it... When Charlotte wants to draw with sidewalk chalk, draw... When Charlotte is playing with bubbles but really wants Mama to play, play bubbles... Wow, I make it sound like Charlotte is demanding... but no, she's not. We should take time outs to be in those moments with our kids, husband, wife, etc... the piles of "stuff" will be there, but those moments flee...

Which brings me to today... a dear friend from Korea, and her girls, were in the "area"- Texas... and were willing to drive up to Oklahoma City to see us. If my head were where it was at before kids, I would have said, "um... NO, my house isn't finished and ready for visitors, I'll meet you ____."... but you know what, the mess had to wait... and not only wait, but it was "open" for all to see... The piles stacked up all over the place. I fretted for maybe a second, and then realized, it doesn't matter... because just like family, times with friends is precious. Life is messy... In fact, life with kids, is SUPER messy... But it's real... and what my life looks like now. I was embarrassed over my mess for about 10 seconds, before I realized that the time spent with my friend... was so much more... I wouldn't give up time spent with her and her sweet girls, for a clean house, any day... nope.not.at.all.