Staying positive, day after day... after day... after day.

"They grow up so fast," my grandma tells me. "Enjoy this time because they'll be out on their own before you know it," old ladies at the grocery store warn me. Well, I don't know about you, but the last time I was scrubbing marker off my kitchen table, I wasn't thinking, "Gee, these are the days that will live in my memories forever!"

Except, you know what? Maybe that's what I should have been thinking. It sure would have beat grumbling under my breath. 

Staying positive is hard to do when you're raising children. It doesn't matter how well-behaved your children are, they are still children; and at some point, they are going to do something wrong. They will leave a small, hard toy out for you to step on. They will (accidentally or not) kick a ball into their younger sibling's face. They will spill their milk at dinner. You can be the best parent in the world and have the best kids in the world, and these types of things will still happen. 

So, as the old saying goes, you cannot control everything around you, but you can control your reaction. If you can't stop the grubby hand prints next to the light switch in the bathroom, you can at least choose whether to laugh or cry when you wipe them off for the millionth time. It is true - someday, those hand prints won't be there, because you won't have anyone with little grubby hands living in your house. I choose to be grateful for the little hands. I choose to laugh at the dinosaurs in the sink. I choose to stay positive.

This, then, is the point of my blog. I want to share the crazy little bits of life with children - the moments that I choose to laugh about. Someday, my kids really will grow up and leave; and judging by the number of old ladies who have told me I'll miss them, I'm sure I will. Until then, feel free to join me as I try to stay positive and enjoy the crazy bits of life with kids.