Patience

Patience is not my strong suit.  Most days, it seems like my supply runs out before breakfast is done.  Unfortunately, with kids, patience is the number-one-most-important-get-you-through-the-day ingredient.  Without it, your kids can feel like a burden instead of the gift that they are.  So, I've been working on looking at things a little differently in order to see the gift (rather than the hair-pulling/teeth-grinding/steam-out-of-the-ears) in these moments.

Sure, I haven't been to the bathroom alone in almost ten years.  But, that's just more quality time with them.
Yes, I haven't been able to say anything just once in years.  Everything has to be repeated over and over and over again.  But, that's just more opportunities to talk to them.
I am up by 4:30 am every single day... weekends, holidays, birthdays included.  On the plus side, I've never seen more sunrises.
They find new and interesting places to hide things every day.  It's like living a scavenger hunt, and who doesn't love to have to unscrew vents to pick out all of the tiny pieces of playing cards that were stuck down there for no discernable reason?
They wipe things on the walls...  disgusting things.  It's an extra opportunity to break out the scraper to peal off these things, and doesn't everyone need more things to clean?
I am constantly having to navigate the floor space through stuffed animals, baby dolls, and those darn tiny, hard, poky toys that stick into your feet when all I'm trying to do is check on them after they fall asleep. What better way to be reminded that your feet still work and you should be thankful to not be a parapalegic?
I do at least fourteen loads of laundry a week.  It could be worse...  I could have to do all of it by hand.  Instead, I only have to wash Maya's frilly skirts and legwarmers with my bare, cracked, bleeding hands.
It takes an hour to get three daughters ready to go somewhere important.  I get maybe fifteen minutes.  But, no one's looking at me anyway with these three beauties around.
I have to sit in the cold, wind, and rain to watch endless soccer games while listening to Sofia and Maya whine that they don't want to be out there.  However, it's better than sitting in the cold, wind, and rain to watch three endless soccer games.
Every single time I ask them to brush their teeth it's like I'm asking them to bathe in acid while allowing hyenas to feast on their eyeballs.  As far as I know, however, no one has ever been turned into CPS for forcing good hygiene.

I wish I could say that these reminders make being a mother easier.  I wish I could say that I'm grateful every single day for the struggles of raising good kids.  I cannot.  Instead, I can say that I'm trying to see the light in their eyes over the dark circles under mine.  And, I'm trying to focus on the little moments that make all of this worthwhile instead of the miniscule moments I get to sit my ample behind down on the couch.  I'm a work in progress.