Thoughts on Mornings at Home

By 8:30 every morning, the house basically belongs to Ian, Alec and me. Long ago when the boys first arrived they would actually still be sleeping at that hour and it was wonderfully quiet for a few sweet minutes. But now they are usually up and at 'em and it is wonderfully busy instead! :)

Alec this morning

Often the boys will be awake and chatty with each other in their room before I get them out of bed. But sometimes Alec will wake up before Ian and he especially seems to like those mornings because he gets the run of the house (and Mommy) all to himself for awhile!

Ian this morning

It's a toss up between eating breakfast and going outside as to which is the boys' favorite way to start the day. Sometimes they are ravenous first thing, and other times they are itching to get going! They still love oatmeal and can devour a huge bowl of it, usually sweetened with a little sugar and milk and some fruit mixed in.

The front patio is a favorite playing place because the sun hits it in the early morning and it is nice and warm. Also, cars are passing by and children are heading to school so there is lots to see and plenty of people to greet! But before long the boys are ready to hit the back patio which is where the real mess fun takes place.

Usually the tiny patch of dry earth where one lone palm tree and one small cactus are planted is off limits to Ian and Alec, for the simple reason that they dig up the dirt and create a small disaster zone. But occasionally - as on mornings like this one - Mommy caves and allows the boys to excavate simply because it means she will have a little more freedom (since the joys of digging will effectively distract the boys for quite awhile!)

I love the expressions on Ian and Alec's faces in the two pictures above because they show just how excited they get over little things and also how "into" each other's business the two of them are (see how intently Ian is focusing on whatever Alec is showing me and exclaiming over in the second picture?) They really are funny little brothers and buddies.

Mornings at home may not be quite as restful as before, nor may quite as much get accomplished, but they still are good times. I have to remind myself of this when I get frazzled and discouraged over the messes and misdeeds of two certain little munchkins! Our time together will go by so quickly and I need to enjoy it while I still can.