Today I choose to embrace

July 14, 2008

scrubbing the bathroom and kitchen floor, having clean kitchen counters (hoping to avoid the dreaded after supper build-up that makes me a cranky best-friend and mama) and de-cluttering my son's room. It's difficult to embrace these homemaking tasks in the midst of summer. The garden calls my name...

The kids also call my name. As much as I involve them in home maintenance (trust me my 5, 7 & 9 year old are active participants in laundry, cooking and cleaning) there's only so much you can make your kids do before they declare mutiny or call child protective services.

So, today as I tackle projects they sit around pestering each other, start crafts they can't finish without my help and occasionally complain "I'm b***d" (kind of a swear word around here). Before bad mommy guilt kicks in I remind them that on a weekly basis we go to the library, the beach, the farm, have picnics in the park, read lots of stories, tackle craft projects with mommy's help - yada, yada, yada. A kindly spoken "figure it out" is my response of the day. Oh, and an afternoon video (sheepish admission).

I used to enjoy cleaning. Back in the days before children, oh so long ago, when you'd wash the floor and it would stay clean for weeks or tidy the book pile in the living room once a week whether it needed it or not. I also used to dust in those days. Looking back I have no idea what I actually dusted as I don't remember those early apartments ever being as dusty, dirty or finger-printy as my house now.

What non-glamorous homemaking tasks are you choosing to embrace this Monday, this week, this month? Know that in doing so you make your house a home. And at the very least it is a momentarily tidy, clean refuge from the outside world. Oh, and if you can, pick a bouquet from outdoors to brighten those indoor work days.