muck and thorns...

no, i did not put those flowers in her hair

a spontaneously loving older brother three years her senior, picked them for her and then adorned his little sister in "nature's finest"

though he avoids the camera like the plague, she was quite happy to have me take a few photographs of her smelling the peony blooms which rest in the shade and bloom later in the season due to this

don't get me wrong, this doesn't happen often, with an older brother placing flowers in her hair....but his kindness is evident in this family....a caring nature....

my life is full

full of life and love and kids

there is always some 'mucking' I'm doing, but truthfully, this "mucking" around is always my own fault...

my life is most definitely a 'bed of roses'......there's thorns amongst the roses

and I seem to get caught in those roses from time to time

perfectly normal

if any of you may be going through a 'rough patch' or are "mucking" through something

perfectly normal

there is nothing on this Earth that has not been suffered or dealt with

ask yourself this: are you complaining about it?

stop

let that thorn pierce you through and penetrate a feeling deep within that stings for a bit...

you are learning

each day we might just step in the "muck" to smell the roses and get pierced by the thorns as we do

just like her older brother taking the time to pick each flower and place it in her long braid...just because...may we all learn from an 11 year old boy's philosophy in life

shying away from any recognition while creating beauty around us and making someone feel special, not ourself

as we go about our day as a mother, and the possible crying baby for mama as the four year old is reminding his mother every 20 minutes he's hungry, and the 15 year old wants a trip back to the library while shooting off a firecracker, and the 11 year old younger brother decides to make a bazooka for his older brother's firecrackers to launch from pvc piping he found in the barn, and the 13 year old daughter wants to make brownies and plant gladiolas with her mama all the while the mother really just wants to make those curtains out of the fabric that has been hanging on the rod just draped over for nearly 2 weeks now with an actually hot cup of coffee......let us make sure we take time to make their life beautiful

put flowers in their hair

make them some brownies

put that band aid on the skinned knee of your little boy

sew those curtains for your home

embrace the day whichever way it comes....muck, thorns and all

it's perfectly normal

no complaints today...........accept it all........

muck

&

thorns

just be sure you smell those roses along the way

xo + blessings,