What will they remember?

4th of July Weekend...

This past weekend has inspired this post.  So, we have four kids.  I'm stating the obvious, but unless you actually have four kids you won't know that someone is always crying, someone is always having a tantrum, it's always loud, and someone is always in time out.  My pictures on Facebook and Instagram rarely show this side of life.  So, I thought it rather important to remind all of you that we are not a pottery barn family...(but aren't those families cute?"  We are normal.  We get frustrated.  We get our feelings hurt.  We fight.  We yell.  (Some louder than others, ahem...)  But at the end of the day, we are a family that loves each other even in the midst of all the drama, and chaos.

During our last car trip to New Hope, Pennsylvania, I got to thinking...what will my kids actually remember from their childhood.  

Will they remember that mommy made them take 250, 000 photos on our living room steps?  

Will they remember that I packed their lunches with love notes?  

Will they remember that Daddy taught them to ride their bikes?  

Will they remember the mad rush every Sunday morning to get to church on time?  

Will they remember Mommy and Daddy hugging in the kitchen and everyone saying, "Ewwwwwwwwww!"  

Will they remember the time Amelia shoved peas up her nose and mommy had to get them out before Daddy got home?  

Will they remember that Mommy liked it quiet, but Daddy came home and liked to be wild (right before bed time, ahem....)  

Will they remember that Mommy had to apologize for losing her temper?

Will they remember Daddy holding Mommy's hand in the front seat while he drove the van?

Will they remember that I did 3 loads of laundry almost every single day?

Will they remember that Daddy almost always rushed home at the end of the work day to spend time with the kids before bed time?

Will they remember that we cried over their sin and tried to point them to Christ?

Will they remember us praying as a family?

Will they remember that we opened up our home and had people over and treated them like family?

Will they remember the times we messed up?

Will they remember homeschool?

Will they remember the field trips?

Will they remember playing in the back yard?

What do kids actually remember from their childhood?  I know what I remember from mine and it's not always what parents expect.   I sat in the van on the way home from New Hope thankful for my family but overwhelmed with the responsibility of raising 4 tiny humans, and getting it right, and raising them right, and loving my husband and honoring him the way I am supposed to.  It's all such an incredibly daunting task.

What will they remember?

I hope they remember that we love them no matter what.  I hope they remember that God is the head of this home.  I hope they learn forgiveness and grace and generosity.  I hope they learn to love people regardless of their faults.  I hope they are fearless.  I hope they grow to have soft hearts.  I hope they remember the love John and I have for each other.  I hope they remember joy and fun.  I hope they remember we taught them responsibility and hard work ethics.  I hope they remember the good days of homeschool and not the really hard days (which was more often than the easy days).  I hope they remember we tried to do our best.  I hope they remember we messed up but that we were humble enough to admit the truth.

And if all else fails I hope they remember I taught them how to bake brownies right before Daddy comes home...because the smell of brownies makes everything better.