Lovin' My Peeps, Musings of my Chillin's

I feel like I am taking spring cleaning to a whole new level.

The Pieper home has undergone some major overhaulin'

Mom has been a schedulin' fool.

The house is gradually staying cleaner (Even on weekends!),

And money is being saved.

Folks, this is huge.

Referring to our home life: making a conscious effort to inspire my husband, my kids

with encouraging words and new ideas.

My kids are already full of their own ideas,

I have been trying to take "Mom, I'm bored"

And kick that fool to the curb.

After living with a broken tile for a couple months or so,

Silas finally got out his glue stick and put it back together for me.

This tile has been especially annoying.

When kicked at a certain angle, the pieces would slide across the living room floor.

We figured this would probably happen because we have not finished the floors,

Or put a guard on the edges.

Daddy tried to tell him that it wouldn't stick, and I chimed in,

Telling him that it probably wouldn't, but that he should try it anyway,

Why not?

I have reached a point in school, being a mom, and basically life in general,

Of knowing how things go, and then focusing on letting go.

Let me explain.

I am king of facilitating. I'll see my kids doing something and get this urgency

That they need my help and instruction.

Without request, I jump in and take over the show.

Lauren especially does things differently.

She does everything backwards from how I would do it.

It may be the difference between right and left handed preferences.

Example:

I put her head through the neck of her shirt first, then put the arms through.

Lauren puts her arms first, then her head.

She takes a task, and figures out how to do something in a way that to me, is almost unheard of.

The shirt is a small example, but it turns out,

When she puts her head in first, her shirt is usually backwards.

Go figure.

I have found amazing things when I stand back and watch.

Its crazy to be learning new tricks from my own babes.

Honestly I too was skeptical of Silas' glue job,

but I am here to tell you that three weekends later,

It still still sticks.

We were all surprised-even Daddy.

So thrilled that his plan worked.

There's nothing like seeing my Man Child made, confident by his own work.

This is my newest thought.

That the monster named bored need not visit our home and inhabit my kids.

Not because I am going to work harder to entertain them,

Because a positive reaction on my part, could inspire enough creativity to change his own attitude.

He is learning that HE is in control of his thoughts and attitudes.

HE chooses to

1. Do something and entertain himself

2. Not do something, continuing to be bored, but not allowed to complain about the choices he makes.

Here's where I come in.

I am still working on this, so don't take it as advice, just follow along with me.

I need to be more available for scooter rides and war games.

I have to have my "junk" together so I can help ward of the boredom.

Even when I am up to my elbows cleaning out the bathtub.

I need to make sure that there is plenty of things that he is allowed to do,

And REALIZE that it might (almost always) make a mess!

My goal is to tell him "yes" to more of his requests.

They're often good ideas, just inconvenient for me at the time because I can foresee the work it takes when the fun is over and there is a mess to clean.

They are learning that a mess that gets made,

Even if it is a million little wads of dirt thrown on the side of the house

(true story, Last Thursday, they were everywhere, even way up high)

gets cleaned by them, no matter how long it takes.

They're learning, I'm learning

And that's what this revolution is all about.