Murphy's Laws for Moms

Once upon a time, in a faraway kingdom, there lived a royal family.  This family had everything a person could dream of: glorious palaces, majestic horses to pull awe-inspiring carriages, glittering jewels, gowns spun from silver and gold threads, servants happily fulfilling every need, gardens overflowing with scrumptious fruits and vegetables, and lives filled with joy - so much joy that, even when it was raining, this family's kingdom was filled with light. What may be hard to believe is that this family could be living anywhere.  They may not truly be royal.  They might live in a two-bedroom walk-up and the only majestic horses and carriages they have are the sneakers and loafers they use to walk back and forth to school and work.  Their clothing isn't anything fancy - it isn't even name brand.  The only time they have a servant fulfilling their needs is when they order fast food or pay the mailman to deliver a letter or package.  They don't have a y...

So many times during the day I try to be a good, Christian mom.  I thank God for giving me two vibrant children who fill my house with...and that's where I get stuck. Because, truthfully, what I often feel like my house is filled with is chaos, clutter, disasters, screaming, fighting, tears, and insanity.  My house is not my sanctuary.  It is not a place where I feel at rest.  Half the day I'm running up and down stairs, pulling things out of toilets, scrubbing messes off floors, pulling kids apart, and hosing them down. By the end of the day, I'm done.  I find myself just yearning for my kids to finally go to sleep, to shut their doors and hear no more questions or needs. I try to count it all as joy, but this is a tough thing to do when you have no energy left to feel any emotion beyond pure exhaustion.  Let's be honest. Joy takes energy.  It takes motivation.  It takes switching my mind from what would be much easier - to just be defeated -...