Family

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Breakfast was done, and I was getting ready to do the dishes, when the tiny voice of my two year old interrupted my thoughts.

“I’m sorry, sweetie, but I could not understand your words" I told her. "Would you take your thumb out of your mouth and ask me again?”

“Uh-huh” she answered, nodding her little blonde head. Her thumb made a popping noise as she took it out of her mouth. Then, she turned her cherub-like face toward me and asked in her most serious voice “Mama, does you has to do dishes now, or can you come pway wiff us?”

Oh, my heart melted. I was torn. “Sister-bug, what would we play?” I asked her.

“We wants to pway Following the Leader!”. I knew my answer was a resounding YES!, which was met with cheers from my two little ones.

We marched around the living room, and out onto the front sidewalk singing “Following the Leader, the Leader, the Leader” like the Lost Boys did from the Peter Pan movie. “Tee-dum, Tee-dee, Tee deedly dum tee-dee….”

We took turns being the leader. Then, we took a quick break while I made a picnic, and then continued our game at the nearby park. We walked the imaginary gang plank, and ran from the dreaded crocodile. I was Smee. Mikey was a terrific Captain Hook, and Johanna of course was a splendid Tinkerbell! We whistled and hummed and laughed the morning away. After our picnic, we stretched out on our backs on our picnic blanket and played “Guess what I see?” while naming funny shapes in the clouds.

“I see a baby dolly!”, Sis pointed out excitedly.. “I spy a pirate ship, arrhhh me matey!”, Mikey chimed in. All too soon it was time to pack up and head back home.

As I took my two wee ones in for an afternoon nap, I spied the dishes still waiting from this morning. A pang of guilt ran through my heart.

I stopped and asked the Lord if I had been disobedient by going… and I felt like He spoke to my heart and said “Dishes can always wait, but today you chose the better way. And, guess what I see? I see a mama that took the time to love her kids! Well done my good and faithful servant, enter into my joy.” And my heart was filled with joy. But I could swear I heard Him humming the tune to Following the Leader…..

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