Perfect really isn't perfect

I am one of those people that put lots of time and any spare money I have into making my house look nice.

I do realize that no matter how hard I try, not everyone will like my style when it comes to decor and colors. I am a thrifty shopper so I get more for my money when it comes to decorations and furniture.

However, I like others, strive to make my style unique and one of a kind. Reality says that little kids cause lots of wear and tear on carpet and upholstery among other things. I cannot wait for the day I replace the carpet in my house without having to worry about little spills and potty training accidents.

Yes, I have made the mistake of telling my 3-year-old to stop and potty whenever he needs to and he apparently took it as me saying just potty anywhere you like in the house.

I guess I had learned my lesson on watching my wording with my older boys, but this came as quite a shock.

Picture this. It's a typical weekend morning and we are trying to get the boys dressed and us get ready to go as well. The two older boys are dressed and they are arguing about which toy (bakugan) they are allowed to take and as I am trying to settle that, I turn around and my youngest, who was partially dressed, is now undressed and diaperless and is now standing there peeing on his toy truck.

This is only one episode of his peeing adventures. We now have him broke of that but that was after the time I learned to never let my drink sit unattended.

Yes, that's right. I sat my Mountain Dew on the table and went in the other room to clean and when I came back to get a drink, I got a big mouthful of what I thought was pop only to have my toddler tell me he peed in my pop.

Of course, my older boys were laughing hysterically and so was everyone else, but I admit, it was funny and disgusting at the same time.

We now have him mostly potty-trained but he no longer does his pee tricks, that's for sure. My point in this story is to show even the best of parents cannot have a perfect house, especially with little children.

I would love to have a perfect house that looks gorgeous inside and out, but realistically, I know that until my little curtain climbers are bigger, than my house will not be perfect.

I have learned to accept this and even though I cannot wait for that day, I dread it at the same time.

In the meantime, I will try everyday to keep the house the way I want it and to one day have enough time to take up sewing and making crafts again.

As a mom, I will expect to get those shocking surprises and no matter how frustrated I am, to remind myself that one day, I will look back and laugh at those little moments.

One day, my house will be neat and tidy, but I hope that the time is along time away because I love my life just the way it is, even if it means toys and fingerprints everywhere.

You can reach me by e-mailing me at jnrodgers@iendeavor.com.