10 minutes

On a solo-parent-night last week, I made Ethiopian Lentil Stew and Injera Bread for dinner.  After it took one boy 1.5 hours to finish, I then decided to give haircuts.  Middle one was so irritated at this point, he would not sit still.  As he jerked his head, the scissors caught his ear, and all wails broke loose.  Jude sat wide-eyed, watching the whole thing.  When older one sat down for his turn, Jude tells him "If you complain, mom will clip your ear."  {Rookie error.  I will now only make grilled cheese when dad's not home, and no haircuts. What was I thinking?!}  

Ah, we laugh now :)

Naturally, our days are wild. unpredictable. loud. fast. full.

{Sometimes I feel like I'm gonna lose my mind!!}  Because of this, we all need a break now and then.  A night out with the girls, a quiet morning with a cup of coffee, a date with my love.  A chance to pick yourself up, dust yourself off, start all over again.  

But when we start living for the next break, we can miss the beauty in the now.  I've been trying to figure out what to do with those extra 10 minutes post-facebook. How to make the most of these moments. 

How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives.

~ Annie Dillard

To not just enjoy the view from the top, but to grab that snowboard and go!

I may not be as good as my 7 year old, but hey, it's fun to try :)

To say YES! as much as possible.
I mean, when did using ketchup and mustard containers as water bottles ever hurt anyone?  Or, seeing if a paper boat could float?  Just look at this smile...

To break out the good bowls.  To see *this moment* as a special occasion.

To let them know how much you love them.

Life isn't always so fairytale-looking.  Sometimes you wake up to grumps and your basement floods...like a river-flowing down there, flood.  

And, we may not always respond the way we should.  

But, 10 minutes?  It's a start...  

To awake. To kiss. Turn up the music loud and dance. Sit down with a cup of tea. Pick up the phone. Tell someone you love them. List your blessings. Memorize a verse. Write a note. Say YES! Pray for whoever comes to mind. Drop everything to hear about their day. Scoop them up on your lap. Laugh. Take a walk.  Risk. To live! To find more pictures like this on my son's camera.

I think I like how the day sounds through this new song.  

Oh, won't you sing along?