They're Mine, and I Love 'em.

Isn't he cute?  This is Lightning McQueen, one of the subjects of this evening's blog post.  Lightning is 10 years old.  This is cause for celebration all by itself, since he is also one of the most ornery, stubborn, bullheaded and MESSY kids I know (and I'm Catholic, so I know a LOT of kids).

Lightning McQueen and his brother, Birdman, are the main reasons why this blog is not about how my children make me breathless with wonder at their perfection and sweet innocence.

They are pisspots, quite honestly.

I'd like to tell you about their bedroom.  Actually, the bed part of it is only shared by Eli the dog and Birdman, since there was so much nonsense going on in there at what I had determined was to be bedtime, that I have had to assign Lightning a sleeping spot in the living room.  Their clothing, books and toys (what toys they have, because in addition to messy they are also very bad about taking care of their things) are all still in there.....I think.

I can't really remember the last time I was in there.  It's too frightening (and I was in the Army, so I don't scare too easily).  Their floor has not been completely visible in MONTHS.  They live out of a laundry basket.  Books and old school papers are scattered willy-nilly all over the place.  Birdman has to do his schoolwork while sitting on my bed because his desk is covered in.....stuff.

Why do I not make them clean it up?  Why don't I just clean it up myself?  Because I am their MOTHER, not their MAID.  It's not my room, I don't have to go in there, if they want to live like pigs, well then go ahead on!  It's a battle I choose not to fight because I've got enough on my plate, honestly.  I'm a single mom who owns a home-based business, I homeschool three bright children, I am involved in local and state politics on an official basis, I get ZERO child support (I should clarify that I am supposed to receive support, but have not gotten any in I think a little over three years) from an ex-husband who is legally prohibited from coming within speaking distance of any of us.

I should also mention at this point that the last time I undertook to clean that room, I took out FOUR BAGS of trash, one of which was so full I had to shove it out the window of their room, across the roof of the addition, and push it off into the garden cart in order to get it to the curb.

It's really too bad that the Superfund money, for cleanup of environmental hazards, is all gone.  I could maybe have gotten some grant money to hire someone to come in and clean it.  But in 5 minutes it would all be messy again.

I really admire families whose kids are neatniks, who always pick up after themselves and never leave messes lying around, but I think the majority of kids are probably slobs, and it's silly and stupid of me to try to make my kids be like some imagined ideal of perfection (when that ideal probably doesn't even exist; I bet those neat children won't eat anything but lime Jello and pretzel sticks, whereas my kids will eat just about anything you put in front of them, everything's a trade-off, you know?)

So I have messy boys.  So what?  They're happy, healthy and smart.  I'd take that over neat any day.

And it doesn't hurt that they are also very cute.