"Highlight Reel" Psssshh! Not this time

My Reality Reel

{fun}

We all know we've heard it and said it ourselves

... blogs, Facebook, instagram, PINTEREST etc... 

They are HIGHLIGHT REELS!!!  

I admit, I enjoy sharing with the world the happy moments in life with all of my friends and family.  

But it's not reality. 

Not every day is full of smiles, cleanliness, organization and sanity.  On the contrary.... we have messy rooms, kitchens and clothes, loudness, laziness, and most definitely INsanity!  

Still, there is love and there are happy times and smiles despite those moments.  

I'm going to let you see an instagram snapshot view into my everyday imperfect life :-)  

It may be upsetting surprising, but please don't remove me as a friend or pity me!!

 Enjoy the honesty and feel better about yourself.

Would I LOVE to be the most organized, cleanly, happy woman I know who not only is that, but also has time to do all of it and manage not to neglect their children or husband while being so successful?... duh!  

Will that ever be me?  NO!  not 100%  if it were then I wouldn't be me.

I believe that God made me the way I am for the family I have and the life He wants me to live. 

There is always room for improvement, and being reformed- no one in their right mind can say there isn't {Praise God} 

The down stair and what we have going on here.

  

Pretty huh! 

Let's be honest, this is nothing to brag about, but it is hopefully something to relate to.  I want to be encouragers to each other and help each other be better versions of ourselves.  

With this out in the open I'll be held more accountable :-)  

Okay so starting from top left corner to bottom right: 

1. The Living Room-  This is probably the cleanest room in our house!  

It is rarely used and if the boys do decide to get in there and play/make a fort/ race cars/ play t-ball, football, wrestle etc with daddy then there is a lovely trunk to throw it ALL back into when they're over it...

You can just imagine what the trunk looks like inside, but who has an organized trunk??  

{if you do, just keep your mouth shut}

2. The Kitchen Desk- There is a bit of organization here.  It may not look that way but I promise there is :-)  The boxes on the ground {in place of where a chair should be} are filled with giveaways and Southern Living items I'd like to sell in a garage sale.  There is no telling how long these will be there.  I am growing VERY tired of them though so my goal is not much longer!  

3.  The kitchen sink- I have been blessed by God with a husband who does the dishes!

LET ME REPEAT... 

he DOES the dishes {most of the time} without complaint.  

Yet the picture shown here is of my doing.  

I finally got my hands "dirty" in the dishes by rinsing them off and placing them in the dishwasher.  Yes, I unloaded the clean dishes that were still in there from Matt washing them the previous night.  

The dishes do get done regularly, in this instance though we had been "busy" with other things.

**excuse**

Matt and I were in California about a week and a half ago for 5 days and we returned to a sick kiddo and we ourselves got sick.  So really, who needs clean dishes when you're on vacation or you and your baby are sick with the stomach bug?  No one in this family!!!  

Let me say I am grateful to my mom for soaking the pots left in the sink while we were away 

(Love you mom)

4. Laundry Room: Oh Lord is this room ever organized.  I swear, 3 males and one female produce A LOT of laundry- You all know how this goes!  

Thankfully the clothes shown in the picture are clean.  It is a matter of putting them away in a timely manner.    

Reasons I give for why the laundry room isn't clean: 

-If only I had baskets

-I need more hangers {who has time to buy hangers and if you do, who remembers?!}

-Where is my maid!!?  {I'm ashamed :-( } but lets be honest we've all thought it! 

-Too bad I don't have a PINTEREST laundry room

-Natural light or bright paint would make it so much more enjoyable to be in there.  

5. The Powder Bath: This room is normally clean.  There has been an unfortunate "mishap" recently in this room that has made it unfriendly!!  

Cullen asked me to hold a miniature toy car of his in my pocket the other day.  I obliged his request.  When we got home each of us took a turn going to the restroom.  

The car fell out of my back pocket and into the toilet water.  Before I could retrieve it, Cullen took his turn.  

My quick decision was to try and flush it hoping the car would sit in a visible area.  

It DIDN'T!  Go figure.  Soo...

I let matthew know of the situation when he got home and requested it be taken care of.  I deemed this situation a MAN's job!!!  

Well...it didn't get taken care of, it has yet to be taken care of and well... you can imagine what a toilet that only halfway flushes is like.  Not good, not good at all.  We are both ashamed and you should be as well.  I'm still leaving it up to Matt to fix :-)

6. Family Room Coffee Table: There is a very simple explanation for the messiness on this table.  

I'm going to go ahead and blame it on my unborn child, Beckett.  

Yes, this table is dirty due to the unfinished crafts I have in the making for his nursery.  I know it makes Matt Crazy but I can't help this.  There is no space for a craft room in our house ;-)

It'll all be worth it when then crafts are completed.  He will appreciate it, I just know it!  

7.  Kitchen Table:  Black, what a terrible idea!  Loved it for a while now I am overwhelmed by how quickly it dirties.  Smudges, crumbs stuck in the grooves, yogurt spills from a child {no names} who has a very difficult time keeping it in the container... hard to keep clean.

My mother in law has a table she is willing to give us, thank you so much, we just have to make the initiative in getting rid of the current table! 

8. "Cute"Art Display Wall:  I had every intention in keeping this up to date and pinterest worthy.  I have failed.  The quotes within the frames haven't been updated through the season as I had planned.  The art that the boys bring home from school that are too precious to be put in a box haven't been updated since last preschool year.   I believe there are even pictures of the boys as babies up there.  Nothing current... That sums it all up.  

Truly this is a quick fix, but it is sooo little in the scheme of things.  

Anyone else have a few failed projects such as this one?  Maybe I shouldn't call the project a fail, just my ability to keep it up to date.  

9.  Family Room:  Really the biggest problem in here is the dust.  Go ahead and ignore the pallet we have on the floor please!  A sick mommy, daddy and boys = TV time and sleeping on a pallet during the day.  

Another problem could be the amount of time the TV is on.  It has become background noise in our house.  It's on while we aren't paying any attention to it.  That is just silly.  

Well there you have it!  The true glimpse into our "Reality Reel" of life.  

It's not glamorous but it is real and I'd like to think it is normal for a lot of people!  

**this mess is not true of our life 100% of the time**

I am tired of not inviting people over {something I love to do} because I don't have it all together like I believe the rest of you do.  It is embarrassing and I compare myself too much to my friends.  I think I should get over this! 

It's something I want to make better.  Taking the time to do it is a simple fix... but for some reason, not so simple.  

I better get a grip on it quick.  Beckett will be here is 9 weeks!  9 WEEKS!!!  

I can't even imagine what it will be like in this house with 3 BOYS if I don't get things rolling here.

Thankfully I have a God who is full of grace and love.  He is here to reform me and make me into a better version of me.  

Keeping a spotless house is on the bottom end of the ladder to me.  A happy house, a creative house a loving house is more important in my book.  

And Hello, I am not even successful at that all the time!

Funny fact:  there was a woman who spoke at MOPs this morning who discussed things we preoccupy our occupation of being a mom and wife with.  

Believe it or not, and I am serious here, there are women who spend more time CLEANING then playing with their kiddos... What?  Not possible!!  Just teasing, I admire those women.

 Really, I have no issue with setting down the mop, broom, duster etc.  I do want to work on the relationship we have. 

So what does this mean?  

I'd like to start having people over more.  My friends will love me for me.  

I am going to keep a more organized house.  It needs to happen, no question.  

This is my current reality through ecard confessions:

I will, God help me, work on spending more time with my boys rather preoccupying my occupation as a mom with things that truly have no worth and no heavenly importance.

I have every intention of writing another blog post with pictures of a clean house!  Hold me to it... 

It's on the internet so it has to be true right?! 

This was fun... Sigh, I feel better :-)  

{don't be embarrassed Matthew!}

XOXO, 

Laura

^{Matthew 11:29 scripture encouragement for the above.}  

²⁹ Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. ³⁰ For My yoke is EASY and My BURDEN is LIGHT.”

Jesus wants us to be in his presence, to "be covered in the dust from his feet" because we are following him so closely.  His yoke is easy and the burden is light.  

There is no point letting the everyday stresses overwhelm you until you are unable to do things for his Glory.  Take his yoke upon you.  This is what my heart is focused on for now.  

Thanks for reading and I hope you have enjoyed YOUR "Reality Reel" today!