Lydia

Phew! Life can be exciting sometimes!! There's something about 9 cases of pink eye, 3 cases of stomach flu, 9 ear infections, and about two dozen coughs/colds all in our little happy family since October that make this mama wish for a different kind of excitement. I'm still working on my moving post, but it's a long one, and my inspiration is lacking. So here's a little bit about someone inspiring...

D and I signed up to help clean the Detroit LDS temple a few months back. We were happy to be helping to beautify such a peaceful place. The catch: no kids allowed of course. I tried asking around to see if I could trade kids with another family doing the same thing. Unfortunately, this was impossible because all three of our munchkins were sick, and who wants to invite sick kids over to play with your healthy kids? And then smiling, beautiful Lydia approached me at church, "I'll watch your kids on Tuesday!" I replied, "Thanks so much, but they're all sick. I can't do that to you." "Oh, I love sick kids!" she said. And she meant it. "Oh, but my baby is especially fussy. She's really clingy anyway, but it's even worse since she's not feeling well." Lydia said, "Fussy babies are my specialty! I love them!" She was not kidding. So it was arranged--we would drive over to Lydia's place, drop off our kids, and spend a few hours cleaning the temple. I was so grateful for her kindness, and I felt like I was leaving my precious babies in good hands.

When we returned to Lydia's after our wonderful time at the temple, something dawned on me, and I've been thinking about it ever since that day. Lydia is exactly the type of mom I saw myself being before I became a mother. Her five kids were lounging all over the family room when we walked in. They were talking and laughing and playing. A bowl of mostly-consumed popcorn had spilled on the floor. The dog was lying in it. Games and toys were strewn all over the place. Her five-year-old walked on the furniture. Lydia was in the kitchen making gingerbread sleighs talking to her teenage daughters, laughing and connecting. Everyone was comfortable, relaxed, and happy. Nobody was bothered by the mess. Our kids were in heaven (even my fussy baby!). D and I stayed for a long time. I felt so comfortable, I didn't want to leave.

I'm a fun mom, I know I am. I have a hard time disciplining because I'd rather just enjoy my kids. I don't like to be rigid about rules and schedules. I love creativity and chaos. But I get crabby when my house is messy or my kids ignore my requests. My personality is so much like Lydia's, but my reality is that I get too caught up in the details. Why the disconnect? Does anyone at Lydia's care that the baseboards haven't been cleaned or that the beds go unmade? All of us there felt at home. Actually the same feeling D and I felt in the sparkly clean temple. I must confess that I feel bored with myself when I get so entrenched in the details that I forget the fun. Why shouldn't I just leave a mess and run off to the Children's museum or the library or a friend's house with the kids? Straightening up all the time is so tedious! [BTW this has only gotten worse with everyone being sick over and over and not being able to go anywhere...we're relegated to sitting around the house, and if we're here, we might as well clean!] Oh, but I love having a clean house!! And I love having fun!!! How can I have it all?? It's time for me to learn more about this amazing Lydia and how she arrived at her comfortable and joyful destination.