Brand New Day

Ecclesiastes 7:7-9 (New International Version)

7 Extortion turns a wise man into a fool,
and a bribe corrupts the heart.

8 The end of a matter is better than its beginning,
and patience is better than pride.

9 Do not be quickly provoked in your spirit,
for anger resides in the lap of fools.

Today I am doing a whole lot of nothing...I've half-watched "Animal House" and "Funny Farm" while listening to a never-ending stream of kids running around the house. I cleaned the kitchen (sort of) and made the bed, and finally took a shower at 10:00am. Guess it's good to have a day "off" every once in a while.

Speaking of patience...the kids are about to drive me crazy, though...the three of mine, plus about five neighborhood ones always seem to hang out here. Hanging out is OK, until they decide they are all pro wrestlers and try to kill one another for fun. They can be so loud! Plus I can not afford to feed everyone who is over here all the time...it's hard enough in today's economy to provide for my own, much less everyone else's. I also am finding it very disconcerting that my kids seem to disregard my rules and disrespect my house when there are so many over here. There is a rule that they cannot take food or drinks into their rooms. Yesterday evening I found five coke cans, two glasses, two large bags of chips, and a bag of popcorn in J.P.'s room. I was furious. No more kids playing in there until he learns to follow the rules.

Andre has gotten to where he pesters J.P. and Clay mercilessly, which is probably completely normal as big brother things go...but it gets on my very last nerve. He knows it, too.

I love my kids, don't get me wrong. I love that they want to play here and that all their friends feel comfortable coming to play here too...but it's a bit overwhelming at times and it is just more than I can take every day. I need a break. I'll continue to pray for patience and strength...please help me in those prayers if you can.

I sure wish Calgon worked like in the commercials! ;)