Forty Toes
There are forty little toes in my house. That’s not a small number.
There’s a lot of time put into caring for these precious little bodies. Some days it feels easier than others… though any parent will tell you that it’s never actually easy.
Parenting comes in seasons … the exhausting, sleepless, just-give-me-one-moment-to-myself-please ones and the rhythms that sail along, giving you some rest for when the tougher ones return.
With so many little bodies, though, the times of rest seem few and far between. And my goodness, you would give anything if they would just.go.to.bed. 
Parenting is hard. If no one has told you this today, hear this: You’re doing a good job, mama. Forget about the dishes for a bit, and kiss those little toes. That’s what I’m going to do.
i totally understand! you are doing a GREAT job!!! :) praying for you tonight for grace and strength and a full night’s sleep! hugs! lora
Thanks. We all need to hear that. I’d love to meet your little ones someday. :)
But you make it LOOK easy! Great photos. Glad to see you still have time for some creativity.
Thanks for this beautiful post, Jess! It’s a wonderful encouragement. You are a wonderful mom, too!
Oh, I understand completely, Jess. When my 4 oldest were ages 3-1-1 and 7 months , everything seemed so VERY hard. Sometimes I didn’t know whether I was coming or going. My mom would always say, “They won’t be babies forever, and one day you’ll have great helpers”. She was absolutely right! My oldest is 13 now, and while I remember the difficulty of those early days, it’s all just a distant memory now that I can look back on and say, “Wow, I was a lot stronger than I thought I was.”
All of the sleepless nights, sacrifices and dedication that we give to our children when they can’t “do for themselves” does pay off. And, you’re absolutely right about giving ourselves a break. It’s important that we relax those “super mom” expectations and understand that our children are the top priorities during this early season. Everything else just needs to function. It doesn’t have to be perfect.
Hope your quality rest comes soon.
Baby toes are so wonderful. :)