Today is the third straight day that it has rained. Not just rained but poured. AND don’t forget, we are in the middle of this pandemic, so…ahhhh! This house and these kids are crazy! Have we watched too much TV? Yup! Have we eaten too many snacks? Yup! Have I gone to the bathroom and stayed in there way longer than I needed to? You betcha! Being stuck inside is tough, as we all know. But then adding a dreary day onto it, 3 days in a row can really break us down. So while going crazy and trying to figure out something else for the kids to do that might interest them for longer than 5 minutes, I turned off the TV and music and I let the kids figure it out on their own. They didn’t want to go to the playroom, they wanted to stay upstairs. So, as I ignored the cries that I was a terrible mom because I turned off the TV, found an article and began reading. My kids finally figured out I wasn’t going to cave and that they had to figure something out. Well, my daughter went into her room and my twin boys, who have now figured out how to open her door, joined her. I heard the door open and didn’t do anything. But then I didn’t hear anything either. No screaming, playing, kids falling off beds, nothing. So of course I knew as any mom does, they must be doing something wrong. But when I got to the room, there they were, all doing their own thing in my daughters room. Playing together, yet separate. Being good. Reading, playing with dolls and my crazy one just excited that his sister let him up on the bed, was running back and forth giggling like crazy. I just watched. I was overwhelmed by the grace my daughter was giving her brothers in letting them play with her toys and books. I was shocked and proud of her brothers for not destroying her room and toys. Then, they all sat on the bed together and played. They did this for 45 minutes. Then my daughter got mad and pushed her brother off the bed, but that’s for another day.

Times right now are crazy. It’s hard. We struggle. We have no idea what life will be like when this is over. But for today. In the midst of a rainy week, I saw the sunshine in my kids. I saw that although they fight a lot and days are long. They are amazing and together we will get through this. I mean, I guess we really don’t have any other choice. But, what we do have is the choice as to how we will get through it. Will we bury our heads, let the kids go wild, just hoping and praying this will “end” soon, and try to mend it after. Or can we take this time to thrive and grow as a family and learn to love our time together, while also praying it will end. As for me, I am going to try my best to do the latter. To wake up every morning and strive to be better than I was the day before. To try and teach my kids and have fun with them. To remember that not only are they learning big emotions in their life, but that they are trying to cope with them during a global pandemic and shut down. That they don’t have their friends, sports and other outlets to distract them either. I am giving grace while also being firm. So as the rain steadily beats on the window, I am thankful I don’t have to water the garden or leave the house in this crummy weather. I am thankful, that just like the rain is replenishing the earth, I am allowing myself to be replenished. I am drinking my water, getting in my workout, writing new goals and moving forward. Each day will pass in the same amount of time, but its how we spend that time that can be to our detriment or benefit. So if it benefits you to have a day of lounging watching Netflix, well then grab the snacks and enjoy it without feeling guilty. We all need those days. But everyday isn’t a lounging day. So wake up and get moving, be it physically, mentally or in your work. Get up and make today count. As we all know some things look great on paper but don’t happen as planned, so if that happens to be today, keep your eyes open because amongst the chaos you will find the blessings. The rainbow following the rain, the hug following the fight. The confession from your child even though they know they will get in trouble. The blessings in mess. This week, I am thankful for the rain because before this week my daughter would NEVER let her brothers in her room. Without the rain we wouldn’t have gotten this time to replenish and reset. I pray that you too can find time and energy to replenish as well.