I had originally planned to write a post about chores for kids on Tuesday because I got these great pictures of my crew helping with housework, but I got distracted by some emergency shepherding Monday night.

Then I had thought that I would post about it on Wednesday, but we had piano lessons, baths, studying for a phonics test, and a migraine to deal with Tuesday night.

And then there was Wednesday. Oh Wednesday. Wednesday is grocery shopping night, church night, and apparently it’s also ruin Speedracer’s last pair of school pants and bust the Cowboy’s toe completely through his only pair of school shoes night.

So here I am Thursday to talk about kid chores…but not really.

The Ladybug washes the eggs and the pots and pans. She loves anything that involves aprons and being at a sink full of water unsupervised.

I’ve been pretty tired and worn down with my allergies and just general Spring busyness around here and being over-tired often makes it easy for me to fall into depression and just all around moodiness. But my crew has been such a blessing to me this week.

It brings tears of joy to my tired eyes to think of them this week.

The Cowboy always comes up to me after he finishes a job and says "What else can I do for you, Momma?" it melts my heart.

I think of the Ladybug rushing back and forth with towels, and straw, and a washtub, and a heater, and a stool for our little washtub living room guest…and I think of her lips spontaneously forming prayers as she worked, “Please Jesus, help this little lamb. Please Jesus, take care of him.” So sincere, so unaffected…

I was so blessed.

And I think we finally found a job for Speedracer--besides feeding the cat.

I think of the Cowboy coming to me in his jammies, hair still wet from the bath, saying “Momma, I think I have something on my heart, deep down. Can you read the Bible with me?” And I think of sneaking a peek of him and Speedracer piled up with Mr. Fix-It over the Bible on the couch while the Ladybug and I studied root words and adding suffixes…

I was so blessed.

He can't really break anything and there's not so many of them that he gets tired before he's done.

I think of the Speedracer finally, finally beginning to bow to the yoke of his daily chores and working on drying “his” pots and pans without complaining. I think of his smile, his pride and enthusiasm as he showed Mr. Fix-It how to put the pots and pans away in the cabinet the right way…

I was so blessed.

And he can reach the cabinet to put them away (or get them out) without any help.

There is such abundance, such joy, in the small moments…

“The father of the righteous shall greatly rejoice: and he that begetteth a wise child shall have joy of him” (Proverbs 23:24, KJV)