Water Balloon Therapy.

Some days I feel like this small village of ours is no big deal. I can do anything.

And then somedays I'm juggling and struggling and trying to balance everybody's wants and needs.

"Can I bike to the Dairy Queen?" T asks me and it's not even 9am.

"Can I play with friends today?" M asks and I am not quite sure I want to start the revolving door game for the day yet.

"Can we go to the pool again today?" H asks and I am daunted by the idea of packing up all four kids in swimsuits for the pool.

When E is ready for the day and ready to go, she gets antsy and starts climbing the walls. And I watch the clock hands move and wonder how I'll ever squeeze a shower in.

Lunchtime came early today. H, was up when the sun was today and no amount of bargaining was going to get him back to sleep so at 11:15 we were inside after a morning of being outside, with macaroni on the stove and munching.

My cousin called and heard the chaos filled house. I think I said I'm sorry and hold on fifteen times in our fifteen minute chat.

I was overwhelmed by the time lunch was over.
Yes.
I told T about the Dairy Queen.
Yes.
I told M about going across the street to a friends.

I laid E down in her crib and she was asleep before I even shut the door and then there was H, oh my H, standing there staring at me.

"Can you just sit on the couch and look at a book while I pick up from lunch? Then you and I can do some fun things?"

I just wanted 5 minutes to decompress.

I had heard children and chatter and questions, oh the questions, all morning long. And I just wanted some quiet.

It was quiet. Too quiet when the five minutes was up. And he was sound asleep on the couch.

I went back and forth. And back and forth in my mind about what to do. Wake him so that he'd go to bed tonight or let him sleep knowing he probably needs it.

I let him sleep.

I knew I had a gazillion things to do to get ready for our camping trip this week. I knew I had some overdue emails and a deadline that was coming tonight for a writing project I was doing.

And instead of doing them....

I sat outside.
By myself.
Filling water balloons.

I'm not sure what made me do it today. But there's something therapeautic about it.

I filled them and then I hid them inside the kids playhouse.

I surprised T when he returned from the Dairy Queen and H when he finally awoke {two hours later}. And oh, were they surprised.

It didn't bother me for one second that I didn't get anything done for camping or any of the writing I was committed to doing.

There was time for all of that tonight. The kids all went to bed early. {8:30!} The packing is done. The writing is done.

And now, we rest.