A Bad Day

Yep, I'd had a bad day.  I don't know what it was, but I woke up feeling bad.  I think I can rightfully blame pregnancy hormones on part of it.  But then there was Jake, my brown-eyed 2-year-old, acting...2!  I was in no mood for his antics on this day.

His banana broke, so he flung it across the kitchen floor.  He wanted milk instead of the apple juice I'd given him, so, yes, it also went flying!  He hauled off and hit Emily right in the forehead for something--I never did find out why.  But enough about Jake.  He's normally a pretty sweet kid...it was just a bad day.

We had our regular day of school.  I struggled with patience that day, and of course when that happens, the kids can easily pick up on it.  It puts a damper on everything, and really creates a more frustrating than encouraging atmosphere.  That's never good.  But maybe something was in the air, because there was also a lot of disrespect creeping out of the mouths of my girls.  Normally they restrain themselves a little better, but not that day...it was just a bad day.

As I reflect back on that day, it occurs to me that on most days, I am the one who kind of sets the tone.  No wonder everyone was having a bad day!  But I was humbled when, in the early evening, Ashlyn informed me that she had written me a "surprise" on the whiteboard.  Here is what she wrote:

Obviously, I thought it was so sweet, but it broke my heart that my bad day had been so obvious to them.  I guess it was a bad day for all of us.  I apologized to them for being impatient, and of course they forgave me, because children are the most forgiving creatures on the face of the earth.  

So, yep, I'd had a bad day.  I don't know what it was, but I'm thankful for my kids (and my husband) who eventually encourage me and show God's love to me to get me through the bad days!