My bedroom furniture is in desperate need of a makeover. Furniture gets ugly when neglected, and our 35-year-old, hand-me-down furniture that we inherited almost 8 years ago when we got married, has definitely seen better days. I mean check out the hardware. It’s just screaming “I was built in 1975!” Not to mention the fact that my beloved and I have moved 7 times since we got married. Yes 7. (We moved a lot in college, don’t ask…) So these babies got a little scratched up in the process. Plus, just in case you were wondering, kids are furniture destroyers, even if you are strict (which I am) and don’t let them jump on the couches or have any food outside the kitchen (which I don’t).
So, I didn’t want to just throw it out, because, it’s actually good quality Ethan Allen furniture, and I don’t want to spend thousands of dollars on new stuff right now. I guess I’m cheap. (really I just want to spend it on clothes.) hehe. Since I also don’t feel like living with ugly bedroom furniture any more, nor do I want to spend the time to sand it down and re-stain, I decided to paint it. Plus, I kinda die over white painted furniture. Anyways yesterday, as I was emptying out my night stand to take out to the garage and prime, I found this:
Stacks of baby pictures of my 3 littles. And I just sat down on the floor for a good half an hour, staring at them. I miss my babies. I swear I can still feel the way their warm squishy little bodies felt in my arms, the way it felt to nuzzle my nose into their cheeks, their fingers curling around my pinky, the way they smelled after a bath, the sounds they made breathing in their crib, that sweat baby breath in the morning. It’s so strange, celebrating every milestone and wanting to keep them babies at the same time. Every step, new word, molar, passes by so fast. And then they are big and independent and brilliant, and even though I LOVE everything about who my kids are now, I wish I could just hold them as babies again. I wish I had cherished those moments more. Been a little less worried about rushing off to the next thing and the next. In my degree we talk a lot about literature that starts “in medias res,” which in Latin means “in the middle of things.” I feel like that phrase pretty much sums up my life right now. I’m always in the middle of something. In the middle of a new sewing project, cleaning my house, disciplining one of my kids, making a big life decision, making dinner, reading a book, riding to the park, talking to Mr. Husband, decorating a room, painting a wall, wiping a nose, calling my sister, wiping the same nose again, fixing a transformer (why to they even make those toys?) and I’m always in the middle of laundry. I could go on and on.
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| (How classic is the look on Ethan’s face?) |
But when I looked down at those pictures yesterday, it hit me. I’m not at the beginning of motherhood anymore. I’m right in the middle of it. Carter finished pre-school, Hannah’s going to second grade next year and Ethan can spell his own name. My littles will never be babies again, and it kinda breaks my heart. But, I also kinda love getting to know who they really are. You know, all the things you wonder when you first have a baby, what kind of kid they’ll be. They are so much better than I imagined. So much more brilliant and funny, and loving, and spunky and energetic than I imagined they would be. And I’m kinda loving being right here in the thick of things, you know in medias res.
My nightstands: in medias res.
On the docket tomorrow, getting these babies finished, and then dresser.
And also please disregard the messiness surrounding the dresser in the first picture. My house is actually quite tidy despite evidence to the contrary. But remember, we’re pretty much always in the middle of things.
First off, love the looks of the nightstands! Yay for white furniture, I’ve painted all mine. :)
Second, oh how I wish my girls were babies again. I’m going through some serious I want a baby-case and it just doesn’t seem in the cards. But then that little glimmer of how awesome things right now are, in between the fights and 6 year old attitude ;) sinks in and I really love this stage of life.
xo
Love white furniture! I am in the process of re-doing 2 china cabinets and a side table that I am thinking will all be white when I’m finished with them!
And I do want to say that even though I don’t have any children yet, I can completely agree with being in the middle of ______ {insert whatever here} – husband and i are both in school {he’s starting his pre-reqs for nursing and I’m finishing my thesis for grad school) and we have a house a dog and a million other things… and I just happened to be going through an old “josh box” that I kept when husband and I started dating that brought back memories and made me wish we were that young again…
but no matter what, cherish the time you have with your husband and kids because I am positive it will go by too fast!
-Laura
http://fairdalediaries.blogspot.com/
Straight from the heart post! I have a little 21 month old and cant believe she is already a big & independent girl. Miss her newborn days. But I was clueless and sleep deprived at that time. Its only when we look back at the pics the reality hits that they infants anymore!
I LOVE that…”in medias res” as that is my life these days too! I think we can all identify with that and thank you for sharing! I too wish I could go back and snuggle my babies!
Great post sis. You are such a gifted writer. You have an AMAZING way of bringing things together in a cohesive way. It’s tough to do… but you do it beautifully. Love you Lynners :).