it won't be like this for long.

rain is tapping on my windows as i sit, cozy and wrapped in a blanket on my couch.  my house is quiet.

can you believe it?  yes, quiet.

the girls are still sleeping, and i take this rare opportunity to relish the silence and pray, asking god to fill my heart with all that i need for this day.

raising two toddlers is not for the faint of heart.  and lately, my house has been ravaged by the chaos that is a one and a three year old in cahoots with one another, in a plan to overtake us all.  as a person that likes things nice and neat, i've had to learn to live with the toys that are constantly strewn all over our living room and kitchen.  pillows that are thrown off of every surface and shoes, bags and purses that are carried throughout the house by little hands that love to put things in places i will never find them (thanks, emmy).

bella loves to sneak emmy in the bathroom while she's on the potty, allowing her to have full access to our cupboard and toilet paper... and within minutes i'm chasing her from room to room as she shoves all of our toothbrushes into her mouth and shrieks from naughty laughter.

my girls are so so sweet...and they are also so so mischievous.

lately i have felt as though they are in a plot to drive me insane.  i want to throw up my white flag and say "fine!  the house is yours!  the mortgage is due on the fifteenth of every month!" and walk out the door.

just kidding.

but seriously.  it's been exhausting.  on the upside: at least they're getting along.

in the midst of this insanity, nick&i constantly remind ourselves that it won't be like this for long.  it's the free therapy we give each other... but it's also a continual, sobering reminder that we will miss these sweet days, as crazy and harried as they may be.

the past week, social media has been bursting with back to school photos of everyone's children.  and the common theme: "where did time go?" say the mamas.  it passes all too quickly.

there are more important things--much more important things--than having my house clean, or keeping emmy out of the toothbrushes (although that's the goal).  i try to take many moments to sit with the girls, or to simply watch them play when i feel as though i should be doing the dishes or folding the laundry.  why?  because it won't be like this for long.

so here's to hoping that i'll remember all of this when i want to pull all my hair out today (because most likely that will happen at some point).  that i'll hold my babies close and whisper prayers of thanks, even if i find a whole roll of toilet paper bunched into a wad on the bathroom floor.

mamas, you know what i'm talking about.

let's make today a good day.  and just in case we need a reminder, give this song a listen.  and try--just try--not to cry.