Bootcamp

On this last day of Christmas break, I pushed the snooze button, reset my alarm, and justified to myself that I would still get some quiet time in because the kids would probably sleep in. After all I had reminded them before turning out the lights last night that it would be their last chance to have a lazy morning.

Actually, I meant to say, this is mommy's last chance to sleep in, so please don't wake up early!

And so why am I surprised that I had companions on both sides of me this morning while I tried to have a quiet time alone? We've already had a fight over pillows, a meltdown about wanting me to retrieve a blanket, and spilled coffee two times and it's not yet 8 o'clock.

So yeah, no pain no gain. If I had pushed through my sleepiness and rolled out of bed when my alarm buzzed, I would have had a quiet hour alone but I didn't take the pain and I missed out on the gain of time spent alone receiving from God.

I hate to say it, but doing hard things often gets the best results.

I've been squatting, lunging, sprinting, and planking at bootcamp twice a week for almost six months.  While those workouts leave me exhausted and believing I will not be able to hold my baby for the rest of the day, I am seeing great results. (Thanks Emily!)

I also see results of facing family difficulties head-on.  Amelie is almost potty-trained. Asher is kind to his siblings. Asa is still nursing even though I thought we would not make it this long. Getting the kids to embrace behaviors that seemed like mountains to climb hasn't been easy, but that pain has also been worth the gain.

Living life as a bootcamp isn't what I'm advocating.  But I am suggesting that pushing through the hard things we don't want to do might just be worth it.

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