My perspective on messes.

As the kids were finishing lunch, I was reorganizing the freezers.  I came across a bucket of chocolate & vanilla ice cream that only had about 2 1/2 " left in the bottom.  I decided to let them have it as a dessert.  After scooping up little glass dishes of ice cream, I called the oldest four in to give them theirs.  They all agreed, "Organizing the freezer is great!"

Not two minutes later, while trying to scoop the frozen yumminess out, Pookie dropped his bowl on the floor and it shattered.  As I was cleaning it up thinking about why can't it just be broken glass and why does it have to be complicated and sticky too, I had the same realization I had last night while cleaning up cream cheese chicken from a cloth-covered folding chair.

Last night we had cream cheese chicken for dinner.  The kids love it.  But if either of the twins gets anything on their hands while eating, they feel the need to shake it off.  Unfortunately, there's often a spoon in their hand still.

So last night after I confiscated their utensils and bowls, I crawled around the table cleaning up messes on the floor.  Then I had to clean up the cloth-covered folding chair coated in cream cheese chicken.  Since we got rid of the bench we don't have enough seating at the table-- thus the folding chair usage.

And I thought, Sheesh.  Why can't they be sitting in a hard-wood chair?  Why do the twins have to create the messiest outcome possible? 

And then I thought, This is probably nothing compared to the messes they may make as teenagers.  Cream cheese chicken took 30 seconds to clean out of the cloth-covered folding chair.  Ice cream and glass took about 20 minutes to get it completely cleaned up and safe.  But how innocent and small are these things compared to what I know some teenagers go through?  Some larger scale woes? 

And then I was grateful they are still small and impressionable.  They are eager to learn and receptive to teaching-- even my 10 year old.  I hugged my little buddies and sent them on their way to create more messes we'll all learn from.