As time goes on, the kids get older and things get more complicated, it feels at times that we are completely buried; Up to our ears in papers and projects from school, stepping over boxes that haven’t been unpacked since our move in August, cleaning, cooking, and feeding our beautiful and precious four children, one dog, one cat, three fish and a gazillion houseplants that are on their last legs. Time waits for no one, and sometimes if I stop and think about it, I am swimming upstream against a wild current that just won’t relent.
My email is stacked and my phone loaded with unlistened-to voicemails and unread text messages. I could be labeled a work-at-home-mom, but that doesn’t nearly begin to put a title on the umpteen tasks that come with this position. The truth is, all of the many things that I skip past, step over, scroll away from or push to the side for later are all because I have my children within my immediate space and they need and deserve my attention. Prioritizing something ahead of them hasn’t worked its way into my mental process, for better or for worse, but I can say that when my children need me, they absolutely have my attention nearly 100% of the time. We come home from work, or grocery shopping, or errand running, or carpooling and we play fetch with Theo and shoot hoops with the boys. Zoe and I (and often Beau) will paint eachother’s fingernails and we’ll set up a tea party in the waning hours before dinner time. It isn’t always perfect, but this is #HowWeFamily, how we spend time together in the otherwise un-earmarked moments where real life exists and I couldn’t be more proud of how that time is spent.
One of our favorite activities as a family is playing charades after dinner. At that time of night, we are all exhausted mentally and physically and Justin and I are almost always unprepared for the witching hour drama that usually ensues around 7pm. Playing games where the kids use their imagination and we almost always all fall over laughing hysterically settles all of the frayed edges of being out in the world all day. We learn funny little things about our big kids and watch to see the intricacies of Beau’s innermost thoughts (he is such a goofball), while truly enjoying Evangeline’s presence while she watches her siblings laughing and Theo getting excited from the upbeat tempo of our voices. We aren’t tapping into anything other than the really beautiful parts of who we are and how we share our lives with each other. It’s not always easy and argument free, and depending on how uproarious the games get can sometimes draw bedtime out until way past our school night standards, but we are making memories and laughing and loving and simply just being. This is, without pomp or circus and without cost to any of us, we are putting everything aside that needs to be cleaned, or organized, or simply dealt with, and focusing on these precious moments that we have with our children.
I partnered with TYLENOL® to share our story as a part of their #HowWeFamily campaign, and I
encourage you to visit the site and be inspired by other stories of other families doing what they do best and why they are proud of it. I’d love to hear some stories from you in the comment section, because I really want this to be a conversation. I’d like to learn more about how families like mine spend time together and appreciate each other’s company.
encourage you to visit the site and be inspired by other stories of other families doing what they do best and why they are proud of it. I’d love to hear some stories from you in the comment section, because I really want this to be a conversation. I’d like to learn more about how families like mine spend time together and appreciate each other’s company.
I have received information and materials from Johnson & Johnson Consumer Inc., McNeilConsumer Healthcare Division, the makers of TYLENOL®. The opinions stated are my own. This is a sponsored post.
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