Mundane Musings

Brown ringlets hang down in front of her eyes as she sits in concentration on the edge of the couch. The coloring book is taking all her attention, fully immersed and at peace in her task.

The smell of strawberry pie wafts through the air, freshly pulled from the oven and cooling on the butcher block for slicing after supper. She requested the pie after we brought home 30 pounds of freshly picked strawberries the day before.

A basket of towels has been sitting on the floor for two days waiting to be carried 20 feet into the bathroom. There are strawberries starting to soften on the counter, waiting to be processed for the freezer.

The gardens are finally fully planted. I will almost certainly throw some more plants or seeds in them as I come across sales over the next few weeks. It never ceases to amaze me that I put these tiny little seeds in the ground and they actually come up and provide us with food. It’s been a full three weeks of gardening and I’m ready to sit and watch them grow (with a side of daily weeding of course). It’s already been a disheartening season and I’ve had to replant many things. It’s also been a good reminder that even when I think I’m in control, I’m not.

The boys are in the addition inventing and building and most certainly making a mess. We’ve had some full days this week, fun days, but the days I treasure most are the mundane like today. Even when I’m frustrated at the mess and the questions and the needs, there is such perfection and beauty in the open space of just being at home. I go to great lengths to protect our time and am a firm believer that a family needs space and time together in order to thrive.

So, cheers to a summer that is both full of time, space, beauty and fun. I’m certain I will never find the balance to all those things and we will have weeks that are so full of stuff that we will need several days to recover and other weeks in which we do so little that we all end up bored and on each others nerves. I do know that I would rather err on the side of simplicity. Kids don’t need a lot of activities, they just need us.