Kanigan Family

I had a moment tonight. After all the kids had gone to sleep I stayed up and watched Dan's and my favorite show, Extreme Home Makeover. It was about a woman and her three little boys who had lost their father. I hadn't watched the show for more than a few minutes before I had to get up and search for a box of Kleenex. When it was finished, I stayed and flipped through the channels and found a sob story Christmas show about a mom who was dying. I emptied out the remaining Kleenexes in my box, picked up my sleeping daughter from her rocker and went into my front room to stare at our Christmas tree. The wall next to the tree holds the pictures of my little guys and it occurred to me that some day those pictures would be replaced with newer ones; either that or they would be moved somewhere else in the house and become the kind of pictures we see in our parents houses of ourselves when we were little, and the styles were funny and we look so young and innocent.
Too often I think I catch myself looking forward to nap time and bed time so I can have me time. I dream about what I will do when all the kids are in school. Right now I have no idea why. If I could freeze time and keep them as carefree and crazy as they are now, I would. I don't even mind the baby powder emptied all over Owen's floor, or the brand new toy sword, bitten to pieces by Linc, or Logan's endless forts and experiments. I'll even flush the toilet and put the lid down twenty times a day if I could keep their sweet spirits young. I'm grateful for my family. And I'm grateful for their hard working and loving Daddy who has given me the privilege of being their Mommy.

Good night.