Then & Now

I'm writing this post for completely selfish purposes.

See, I was attempting to write down some information the other day while on the phone and couldn't - for the life of me - find a pen with any ink or a pencil with a sharpened tip.  I thought to myself, "I USED to have plenty of pens and pencils neatly organized next to the phone.  That was then, and this is now..."

It got me thinking about how much my life has changed in the 9 1/2 years I've been a mother.  And in a spurt of bad attitude I started making a mental list of all the things that I miss from my pre-parenthood years.

There are a lot of things on that list.  I'm sorry, but it's true. 

It wasn't exactly making me bask in the joy of my calling as mother.

The "nows" kinda seem like a bummer when compared to the "thens" of life.  Lots of sacrifices, tears and prayers, and feeling in over my head as I try to raise 4 children.

But that's the crazy thing about being a parent.  You see those little faces, and well....

Then I had:

Plenty of computer paper

Pens and Markers with ink

Sharp, non-sticky scissors

Staples in the stapler

Now I have:

Reams of paper with one small picture drawn in  the middle

Dry pens and markers, broken pencils

Dull scissors with yogurt smears

Staplers stuck in my feet rather than in the stapler

And them

Then I had: 

Clean windows, mirrors and sliding doors

Toothpaste free sinks and counter tops

Plenty of toilet paper

Towels hung on their hooks

Now I have:

Finger prints, lick marks and crayon art on all my glass

Blue and red toothpaste drizzles 

Empty toilet paper rolls

Crumpled towels on the floor

And them

Then I had:

Salmon and steak dinners

Lindt truffles

Capitol Theatre

Olive Garden

Now I have:

Macaroni and cheese and hot dogs

Lindt truffles still... but eaten in the privacy of my locked bathroom!

Netflix and Redbox

McDonalds

And them

Then I had:

Mesquite and Las Vegas

New Orleans

Seattle

Jackson Hole

Moab, Moab, Moab...

Now I have:

The elementary school

Smoot and Founders Parks

Hogle Zoo

Dreams of Moab...

And a family.

So future Aspen, when the days are hard, the dishes are piling up, the garbage is stinking up the place and the phone won't stop ringing, read this post.  And bask in the "now".