I never dreamed I’d end up a coffee drinker.  I grew up in a family of non-coffee drinkers.  I liked the smell, but the taste?  Not-so-much.

Then I married a man who drank coffee every single day.  Besides packing his lunch every morning I learned how to operate a coffee maker and brewed a pot for him every morning.  (that changed as the girls were added to the family – he now makes the coffee 🙂 )

For years I still didn’t drink coffee.  But slowly that changed.  A sip of coffee here and there.  Playing with adding cream and sugar.  And then I ordered my first Starbucks and I was hooked.  Doctor that black brew up right and you have a wonderfully delicious .elixir to sip.  On cold winter mornings it can be the boost I need to get me going.  Praise God for creating the coffee bean!

Sitting on my couch on Saturday mornings with my husband, coffee in hand, is one of my favorite things these days.  When our weekends get so busy we don’t have time for that it is such a let-down.  I cherish my time with my husband.  As our children get older it seems we have less and less time as just a couple.  I know our children need us, and there is a lot of life to be lived in these short years we have our children living in our home, but now and then I need a break – some time with just the father of my children!

This past week I had a ‘sort of’ break from my kids.  I say ‘sort of’ because there was almost always some kids around but it wasn’t just my kids and usually not all of my kids were here.  My sister’s daughter and son were here and my girls took full advantage of every minute they had with them.  They split up the time between here and my Mom’s – one day the two teenagers would be here and the 3 younger kiddos would be at my Mom’s.  Then they would trade.  A few times they all were at my Mom’s.

So I had a couple of nights with no kids, and several nights with some of my girls and either my niece or nephew here.  It was so fun to have them!  So fun to get to know them a bit better.  So different to have a boy around the house!

Today my girls are all at my Mom’s, spending the last day of their cousins vacation with them.  Travis and I will head over for supper and to bring our girls home.  I’m so glad they can be together and have fun.  I am sitting in my very quiet house.  So many things I need to do, so much I should get done while my house is quiet.  Since I home school, I rarely have a quiet house, a day with all of my girls gone.  And I will admit, there are days when I crave some space, I crave some quiet.  Some days I want to just sit on my couch, drink my coffee and listen to the silence.

Today though, I miss the noise (just a little though!)  I am ready to have my girls back.  I am ready to get their CAT tests done and sent in, wrap up the school year, get back to sewing, do some fun summer stuff.  Funny how you crave a break, crave a vacation, want something different.  Then when that something different comes along, about a week or so in, and you are ready for ‘normal’!  I think my sister is ready for her kids to come home too – they have been gone almost 2 weeks!

So to all you tired and frazzled Mama’s out there – try to find a break – then come back and love on those kids again!  And if a break isn’t in sight for a while – trust me – you would soon want the chaos of ‘normal’ life back again!

Drink some coffee – heat it up if it’s gotten cold – make a new pot if it’s past the heating up stage.  If possible, eat something sweet with your coffee – if sugar gives our kids boundless energy, surely it’s worth a try for us, right?

Sew a Fine Seam

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