Discovering Home

Home again, home again, jiggety jig. And getting back into the swing of things. The Man helped me clean the house when I got back, and we have groceries in the fridge, and our three (count them, three) autumn decorations are up. It's a new day. Incidentally, when I went in the boy's bedroom this morning to get them out of Tiny's crib (Littles likes to join him for some pre-dawn playtime), I discovered every single stuffed animal and blanket from both their beds thrown into the middle of the floor. Littles gestured to them proudly and said, "Look at our decorations, Mommy!" I like the way this kid thinks.

Anyway, I'm hoping to get life straightened up and organized again and have that mean regular writing through the month of November (along with other things). We'll see how that goes. Regardless, I've been thinking a lot about what it means to be faithful in the little things and I think one of my challenges with that is my entertainment addiction--I'm trying to be honest here. I love to be entertained. And sometimes when the boys are finally asleep (finally...wait, did I mention finally?) I like to just sit on the couch and shut off. It's hard for me to remember that allowing myself to be entertained is not the same as allowing myself to rest. Sometimes doing "nothing" is more exhausting than doing something purposefully and well, whether that be writing or finishing up a project or even just that last load of laundry for the day. I say all this and I just finished off Season 4 of Parks and Recreation with the Man and loved every minute of it. Especially the minutes that were accompanied by ice cream and cookies.

I'm including a couple pictures from our trip just for your viewing pleasure and for my own enjoyment. Even though there are no fall trees here in Altus and our house is consistently covered in pet hair and cobwebs, I am so glad to be home. I like putting my boys to sleep in their own beds. I like cooking in my own kitchen (even though some of the dishes had been lovingly reorganized by the Man while I was gone). I'm even enjoying rubbing the pets between their very furry ears. And it should go without saying that I'm happy to be back with the Man because, well, he makes my life happy and does things like carving a train jack-o-lantern and hanging a picture for me without being asked and reading the boys books in very silly voices. That's home for me, more than the leaky windows or the falling off closet doors. And I want to make that the truth I live out because I realize that in some way I am home for them too. I want to make sure that means something worthwhile.