Searching for pinecones...

Friday morning I got the older kids off to school, came home and did 100 things and was worn out in a few hours. I just wanted to go back to bed and drift away for awhile- but looking at the clock and only seeing 11:00- I knew I was dreaming. I was exausted, depressed and feeling unhappy about my Mothering talents, so I blurted out: "Grace, lets go for a walk!" My beautiful 4 year old ran to her room and was dressed in about .3 seconds. She ran out and said, "I'm ready Mom, can we look for pinecones too?" You betcha. We bundled up, hopped in the wagon and walked to the park. It was a beautiful morning and the sun was perfect. We walked and gathered her treasures and then walked some more. It felt so good to be moving! And jogging! And breathing in cold air! And to hear my babies laughing at the vibrating wagon under their bums! It was heaven for a hour and we even took the Christmas lights down when we pulled up to the house. It reminded me that no matter how I'm feeling, I have 4 children whose futures depend on what we do in that day. The influence we have over them is ginormous. At bed time when I asked Grace what her favorite part of the day was, she said- "Our walk Mommy."