You get what you ask for!

Man oh man. I wasn't even out of bed this morning before I felt the inner battle starting for the day. I went to bed last night, with a plan for my morning, the alarm would go off, i would hop out of bed, iron Eric's shirt for work (don't worry, this is a rare occurrence so don't think i'm anything to aspire to!), get Noah through the shower and the kids through breakfast, fix Eric's lunch, and do it all while having a heart of JOY. Sounds perfect, huh?

Enter stage.. Carissa at 5:45 am... "I want to get up...when will it be morning... I have to pee... I want a drink... will you tuck me back in... I'm not tired...." I'm knowing my alarm is due to go off in about a half hour and I so want to get the last few precious winks of sleep. I guide her through the routine of potty and drinks and tucking back in and try to not engage in eye contact or verbal conversation as I really am pretending I'm still snug in my warm bed...soon I am back under my covers... ahhh sleep... just a few more minutes....

Enter stage... Noah at 6:24 (by the way, my alarm SHOULD have gone off at 6:20 but low and behold I hadn't actually turned it ON after setting the time... I should have been thanking the Lord for getting me up as I'd planned.......).... He'd had an accident and was drenched... he AND his bed... *big sigh* as my feet hit the floor and i shuffle to the bedroom, still pretending it's night and completely planning to send his behinder back to bed... We go thru the necessary steps to get him back to bed and i walk back to bed... slip under the covers and lay there... Oh, and I forgot to mention Micah followed Noah into our room at 6:24 am. When I asked Noah if he'd woken Micah up on purpose he said, "YES, b/c i was scared!" OH the thoughts that went thru my mind... but i DID manage to hold my tongue. Perhaps and angel was sitting on it.

As i crawled back into bed I mumbled to Eric, "Well, good thing he didn't shower last night because that would have just been a waste." ACK, as soon as I said it i knew it was ugly. It wasn't necessary, it wasn't purposeful and it certainly didn't start my day out living regret free...

Throughout the day, as I've been ever so conscious of my thoughts and words, I've repeatedly had to seek the Lord's face for strength and patience. It seems that Micah has literally lost thousands of brain cells during the night, because surely the behavior he's exhibiting today is just so THOUGHTLESS and done on such impulse. It doesn't hurt for me to remember he IS only 3 years old... :)

I honestly think, that I'm in for a few rough days here at home. I think that there will be all kinds of opportunities for me to slip into old habits, plenty of chances for me to spew words that don't build up or edify... and as I go through my day, my constant prayer is "guard my heart and guard my lips"...