Summer.......

You know all the anticipation and plans you envision for the summer; warm days spent by the pool, care-free afternoons at the beach, long weekends at the beach house and all those barbeque's! Then when summer "officially" arrives you find yourself standing in the kitchen dripping with sweat and all the kids standing around you, some crying as the are pulling at your shorts, all needing something different from you!! Ahhh......Summer........yes this is what summer really is and should be in a house with 7 children! My three girls, two boys and my two nieces - yup.... SEVEN!! We have nick-named our place "The Mad-House" - only because it always resembles a tea party with the Mad-Hatter here!! There are moments when the kids are all playing together and times when they are scattered in all different directions! Some times they are fighting and other times they are so sweetly sitting on the couch all together. I wouldn't change either situation. The times of chaos are the times when I see the true personality and strong sense of conviction that each of my kids has. I see the fierce demand for recognition and understanding that they require as a simple fact of life, they will be heard and they will make sure of it! Granted the lack of fighting and chaos is so much easier, I enjoy watching the kids interact and work together. That is when I see how loyal and committed to each other they are. The sheer skill of understanding and love that you can see through their laughter and cooperation melts my heart and makes me smile. Summer time gives me the opportunity to see all these things in my children in a different light because I have the uninterrupted time with them to recognize it all. We spend days together during the summer not just hours, they are all mine and i don't have to share them with school for a few fleeting months! Our days are more relaxed and carefree, I don't feel the need for quite so much structure. These are the days when we kick off our shoes and really spend some time together! Ahhhh......Summer.......the way it should be!