Some Days It Was Flawless

We're in the time of life where things are pretty routine. All 3 of us work outside the home, we do chores on our days off and for the most part life is fairly calm. But it hasn't always been that way.

We raised 3 girls and that included softball practice, kids choir, neighborhood friends, school activities. Our lives were very full.

Some days the girls would be playing in the backyard and I'd be ahead of the game enough to set up the kitchen table with construction paper and scissors and stickers and markers... when they came inside, "Mom, we're bored!" I'd send them to the kitchen and hear, "Oooooh! I wanna do crafts!"

"Sure! Go ahead!" They would clamor up to the table and I'd head into the living room and toss pillows and blankets on the couch and get a movie ready, then go back to doing dishes or laundry or whatever. Sometimes I'd sit down with them and admire their beautiful artwork and comment on their creations. (Because they had each other to talk to and bounce ideas off of, my presence wasn't as essential as say, a mom of an only child.) After a little while, "I don't wanna do this anymore, can I have a snack?"

"Sure. Do you want to watch a movie?" "Yea!!" They'd dash out to the living room and settle in for some Aladdin or Little Mermaid. Some days I was always one step ahead. :)

Then there were other days.

The girls would fight; the furnace would quit working; the toilet would overflow... you've all had those days. Days when you absolutely can't wait for this season of your life to be over. It seems those chaotic times will last forever. You'll think you've ruined your children forever. That this decision you made or that decision will send them to therapy for years. You truly believe the noise will never end and you will definitely loose your mind!

Well, now those days are over for us. The girls are grown and out living their own lives. Sharaya's a single mom, raising Allie by herself. (At least for now. We don't know what the Lord has planned for her future. We know it will be good, what ever it is!) Sharaya's independent, she's setting goals for her future and is doing well.

Diana is in Philadelphia, working and exploring that great city. She's adapting to life on her own. She's figuring out who she wants to be. She's following her dreams and creating the life she's always wanted.

They're living apart from Chuck and I now, making their own decisions and choices. But that's good. That's the way life is supposed to work. Our girls are experiencing life. They're strong and happy. As hard as it is to live life without them, we know life is progressing exactly as it should.