It's no secret I'm busy. (Aren't we all?) And in-between making sure I keep the tiny humans in my life alive and fed, being a wife, running a small business, handling all the behind-the-scenes work, building a house and somehow finding space for things in our current rental... I tend to fall into the mindset of WORK.  Just WORK.

I find myself going through the motions of life-- fueled by fear and anxiety of deadlines and to-dos.  I wake up get the kids dressed, shove some breakfast at them and head out the door. I'm blessed to have Paisley at the shop most days so I get to at least see her, but she's gotten so good at self-entertaining in her little room-- it's almost sad.  

But I live in the world of responsibility and deadlines... of to-do lists and check boxes.  And sometimes I find myself so consumed with it that it becomes all I do.

So on this Sunday before a big trip to Wisconsin to watch my brother get married (YEA!), my to do list was especially long.  Leaving a business while I"m not there means a PILE of lose ends to tie up and make sure everything is perfect and tidy.  It means 8-10 loads of laundry and folding, and packing.  It means making sure the house doesn't look crazy for the dog walker. It means answering the 100s of emails that seem to come in weekly. It means setting up the next launch of designs to ensure everything is staying ahead and on trend.  

And all this means the kids are watching TV or coloring in their play room.  Don't get me wrong. I think it's good for the kids to have the skills of finding entertainment themselves, and having down time and not being "entertained" all the time.  But when their time with "MOM" becomes always the "go and play quietly" moments... what am I creating?  

"What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Mark 8:36"

Today, I decided I had to add one more "TO DO" on my ever growing list.  

• BE SILLY
• MAKE A MEMORY
• LAUGH

So, since one of my "TO DOs" was to clean.. I figured why not make a bigger mess first...

So I went and got the paint.  I went into the bathroom and called the kids.  I armed them each with a paintbrush.. and let them go to town!  The laughter and glee in their face was priceless.  They thought I'd lost my mind.   What they didn't know ... is I was just allowing me to come back.  Today I decided instead of saying NO to the kids, that I was going to SAY YES.  I was going to SAY YES to Freedom. SAY YES to Play. SAY YES to creativity and embrace the mess.  And it was worth every moment... and the shower and the kids got cleaned afterward!!