Babies Don't Keep...

Cleaning and scrubbing can wait for tomorrow,

For babies grow up, we've learned to our sorrow.

So quiet down cobwebs, Dust, go to sleep.

I'm rocking my baby, And babies don't keep.

So, I emailed this poem to some of my favorite moms recently.  While we've all heard the moral of this story in some form or another, having too many reminders is impossible. As a mom who now has 3, I've let this ring a little truer on a daily basis. The highest counter in my house is piled high, after all, its the only place the older two still can't reach. And, well, there's the laundry and the floors, the toys, and the toys, and the dishes, and....you get the idea. I really don't mind letting all that go, for time with my flock. Until...dun, dun, duuuun...someone wants to come over....Oh my word, if they see my house they'll think I'm a hoarder, or lazy, or, or...something else terrible. HOLY HEAVENS what do I do?

I speed clean the worst parts, close my bedroom door, and brush my teeth....ready. And, I feel somewhat guilty. For what? Hoarding: toys, kids craft projects, coupons, kids jackets, dishes, bottles, and sippy cups ...after all, thats whats laying around and piled high. Maybe the guilt is for being lazy: after all, should I really sit and play on Pinterest and eat a quiet lunch at halftime (my word for nap time) when I could tackle the piles. Or is the guilt over the "something else terrible"??? Which brings me to another quote I recently found, 2 actually,

Excuse the mess, my children are making memories....
 (great, all toys and craft projects are excused)

And....

If you've come to see my house,
call back and make an appointment. 

If you've come to see me, come on in!

The latter is the way I feel when I go to see my friends or family. I don't care about the clutter or the dust, I want to see them! They are what fill me with memories, encouragement and laughter...not their clean counter tops. And I love to see kids having fun, playing in their "fields", it just beams happiness into the world.

So, in the end, I'm not excusing myself from decluttering and cleaning. But this is a written reminder to myself and the other moms I love, that:

Cleaning and scrubbing can wait for tomorrow,

For babies grow up, we've learned to our sorrow.

So quiet down cobwebs, Dust, go to sleep.

I'm rocking my baby, And babies don't keep.

And that is a fact!