Why do I have toothpaste on my pants? Why wouldn’t I?

We are currently caring for seven kids ages nine and under. Often, we have an eighth kiddo along for the ride. He and our 4-year-old, Keith, are like twins as they are only 6 weeks apart in age. Once a few weeks ago, the two of them were actually sitting still together and I took a picture to prove that it can actually happen.

Their stillness only lasted a few seconds, then they were off and running again. Meanwhile:

I could share picture after picture of our little ones, but in summary:

• There are a lot of kids
• The kids are always busy
• Someone is almost always screaming
• Our house is always a mess

And that’s why we aren’t surprised that I got toothpaste on my pants.

It happened on a day that we’d been having issues with the four-year-old “twins” getting out the toothpaste and squirting it everywhere – the bottom of the sink, their bedroom floor, I suppose we could say – anywhere except for a toothbrush.

No matter what we did to discipline them, they would go back to the toothpaste. Throw that into the mix along with our 7 and 9-year-olds acting out because of trauma, our 3-year-old’s super frequent emotional melt-downs, our then 1-year-old always wanting to be held, and our 5-month old acting like a normal 5-month-old in which he enjoyed regular feedings, bouncing, snuggles, and diaper changes. Did I mention the poop that got all over the outside of the toilet because someone didn’t make it in time?

And that’s why we aren’t surprised that I got toothpaste on my pants.

I should actually be glad it was toothpaste and not poop.

After we got four out of eight kids down for afternoon naps that day, I plopped down to sit by Matt for a second and proclaimed, “At least we know that I won’t always have toothpaste on my pants. They’ll grow through this someday…”

But then I sighed and followed up my first thoughts with these, “Of course, then they’ll all be dealing with much bigger issues in their pre-teen and teen years. Then we’ll be wishing that we were only dealing with toothpaste.”

Mom sheds a big fat tear.

Here are Laura’s takeaways from the toothpaste situation:

1. The kids really will not all be babies forever.

We will get through these days. Today they are 9, 7, 4, 4, 3, 2, 2, and 6-months. There are so many babies all at once that I’ve stopped wondering why I can’t speak a sentence correctly. Most of the time it feels like we live in a circus and a zoo all wrapped up in one. And we are coated in toothpaste and poop. But in just a few years, these babes will all wipe their own bottoms, dress themselves, buckle themselves, and load the dishwasher, praise Jesus hallelujah amen.

2. These kids will all be teenagers at the same time.

Today’s hard will get easier, but then it will get harder again in a different way. I choke on my air when I think about what it might be like. But then I have to remember to do this…

3. Do not look past today.

Each day has enough trouble of its own. Every season in life has incredible joys and extreme challenges. We can appreciate them simultaneously, and we can learn more every day about how to trust the God who is walking ahead of us and carrying us through.

How do we do this?

There is no other way but to stand firm in God’s power and truth. I don’t mean that in a trite “it’s what all the good Christians are doing” sort of way. I’m talking about not letting the enemy keep us in a fetal position and instead STANDING UP in His power and strength. We put on His armor, and we STAND.

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. ¹¹ Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. ¹² For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. ¹³ Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. ¹⁴ Stand firm then with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, ¹⁵ and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. ¹⁶ In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. ¹⁷ Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.¹⁸ And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. Ephesians 6:10-18

How do I care for all these littles and walk through big, hard things with my bigs too? How do I feed them three meals a day in the meantime? And how in the world am I going to get this house packed by the time we close on our house?

I am tempted to lay down in defeat, but the Holy Spirit nudges me to do what I know to do: STAND UP.

In Him, we are strong, solid, and victorious. We stand firm in this Truth. Be encouraged by this short video —>