What happened to my house & car?

Where, oh where, did my neat, clean car and house go?

Last week, I realized that my car is "mama's car" and it really ISN'T my car anymore. It has become the traveling fun-mobile, designed to have everything possible to entertain Keifer on our daily drives. I used to obsess about having a neat, clean, fresh-smelling car. Now I'm content to have all the crap piled up in the back seat (aka K's stuff) just piled up looking somewhat neat to make me happy. Let's see, we have blankets, extra hats, a pair of mittons, books galore, her Nursery Rhyme player, a play telephone, and on the floor an extra pair of shoes. In the front console, I have her packages of Teddy Grahams, some of them half-eaten, as her new favorite indulgence are the CHOCOLATE bears, mama, "Chocolate!". We also have a stack of CD's (we really need an ITouch, don't we?), for her listening pleasure (or dismay!). Oh yes, and I have a package of these really big wipes (for adults) that I was given when my Papa passed away last summer. They are wonderful for wiping off chocolate hands and mouths when we arrive at our destination.

However, with all the whining about losing my car to a 23 month old, it really isn't a big deal. I just have to vacuum it out and clean it up after our gross, dirty winter, and it'll make me feel better. To have my girl happy and with me means much more than how clean my car is, right?

My house, on the other hand, well, I'm slowly learning to "let go" and realize that no matter how many times I clean up toys, dust,and vacuum: with 2 dogs, a 23 month old and the realization that we'll soon have a baby in there as well, it'll no longer be the spic & span house I once owned. Again, not that it matters, but it is hard to "let go" of that image of a neat and clean house that I possess in my mind. I just wish we had more room for all the "stuff' we have piled everywhere. It's easy to just pile stuff up these days and let it sit, only to come back to in about, ohhh, maybe 4-5 months!