Lord, I am thankful for messy hands

A few nights ago was "bath night." It is often a struggle giving the girls a bath, because they freak out when I wash their hair, so it doesn't happen as often as it should. Actually, before Tuesday night's bath I can't remember the last time they had one. It was probably when my parents were here a few weeks ago. Does that make me a bad mother? I hope not. They're generally pretty clean because we usually don't let them jump in mud puddles or garbage and I have a system for cleaning the house each week. That and they're related to Bill who's a pretty clean guy so maybe they inherited it. I told my friend with 4 kids that if we ever had a boy I think he'd be pretty clean like Bill. To which she replied, "good luck with that." I think the "clean" days in this house are numbered.

Anyway...during the bath and afterward Amelia just wouldn't cooperate. From splashing and drinking the bathwater, to wiggling uncontrollably while getting dressed, to fighting getting her teeth brushed (I actually had to pin down her arms so I could brush her teeth). Sometimes when the girls are obstinate like this it can make me so angry and I can get really harsh with them. But on bath night, all I could do was smile and thank God that I even have children. I know many years from now I will wish I could still help them with the daily tasks, and many more years after that I will wish they even lived in the same house as me. It's very hard for me to remember this sometimes, when the chore list gets longer with each day and my day isn't going the way I want it. Then it sets that I'm just making it harder on myself because I'm acting selfishly. 

Please Lord, remind me of this feeling of thankfulness. Thank you for giving me a family to care for and dirt on the floor to sweep up. 

I love this poem, my friend Melody posted it on her blog a while ago and it's too good not to pass on.

I heard my Mom say as she scrubbed today,

"I'm thankful for brushes and brooms,

I'm glad to clean my cozy house

That's filled with cheerful rooms."

I heard my Mom say at the washing machine,

"I'm thankful for dirty clothes.

I'm glad that I have a healthy child

Who can play each day he grows."

I heard my Mom say at the sink tonight,

"I'm thankful for dirty dishes.

I'm glad we filled our plates with food

Instead of empty wishes.:

I heard Mom say in her prayers tonight,

"I'm thankful for problems today.

If life never got a little bit rough,

I might forget to pray."

~V. Gilbert Beers

"Precious Moments"