I've come to the conclusion...

I've been thinking lately. And I think I have the answer. No, it's not 42 (the answer to Life, the Universe and Everything...please tell me you "get" this one). I'll tell you what it is, though.

Homeschooling and housework are mutually exclusive. I can have a clean house and clean laundry. OR...I can teach our children and have happy kids. Tough choice, isn't it?

So if you're ever in my house and you notice the fine artwork on the carpet, you'll know I'm doing my job. And yes, that is indeed 10 colors of dry erase marker decorating our wall to wall carpet in the living room. I'm quite certain that you could sustain a small village in a third world country from the collection under the dining room table. I'm not saying it's all food, just saying you could probably sustain them for a good month or so. Maybe we should get a dog, then I wouldn't have to clean under the table quite as often. But then, that would be two (or ten) more things for me to do on a daily basis, so never mind.

Whenever I'm feeling overwhelmed and over worked, all I have to do is look around me. I'm not talking about looking at the mountain ranges of laundry needing to be washed or folded or put away. And I'm certainly not talking about the piles of dishes in my sink. No, I'm talking about looking at other moms around me.

I don't mean that I pull others down to feel better about myself. I just think I feel a little more normal when I see others around me struggling to run the same race. It's like I'm not the only one. We each have our strengths. But when I look at friend X's house, and see that my disaster area is Martha Stewart's home in comparison, I feel just a touch better. But she has her laundry done. So I look at friend Y's house, and see her piles upon piles upon piles of undone laundry, and feel good that I'm two laundries from being "caught up." But her living room is immaculate. And her kitchen is clean.

So there you have it. All my dirty secrets. When my house is at its filthiest, that's when I'm working hardest with my children, and leaving them with memories to last a lifetime.