Day 7 - The Lord Will Give You Rest

"Come to me, all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest." Matthew 11:28.

I'm exhausted. All the time.

I don't know if it's because I have a toddler, or it's because I have a full-time job AND a toddler, or a full-time job, a toddler, a 10 year-old AND a teenager....or maybe even because I have a full-time job, a toddler, a 10 year-old, a teenager, AND a husband who hasn't been around these past 10 months to help me carry the load.

Grocery shopping, house cleaning, laundry, yard work, carpooling, science projects, cupcakes for school functions, homework assistance ...plus everything I mentioned above equals one weary and burdened wife and mother.

Don't EVEN ask me to join you at a picnic on a Saturday afternoon or a wine gathering on a weeknight...or even church service on Sunday mornings. I don't want to go. Because if I do, I'm not getting my chores done or I'm addition yet ONE MORE "to-do" on my list of daily activities.

Yep, I'm exhausted, and then some.

Today is Saturday. But I don't get to sleep in. Nope. Toddler child was up and at 'em by 6:45 a.m. She at least allowed me to doze in bed until 7:00 a.m. Then it was picking up the house, bleary-eyed and with my full cup of hot coffee spilling as I scurried around the house, cooking eggs and toast for breakfast, which nobody ate, and watering the grass, feeding the dog, caring for our bunny, chasing after a wayward baby, and meeting my husband's needs before he flew out the door for work.

I collapsed into my bed at noon, not even having eaten lunch. But seriously, I could not take one more step. I slept hard. My 10 year old woke me with the 2 year old in tow. "Mommy! Time to wake up!"

Ugh.

I crawled out of bed, threw on my sandals, and headed out the door for the local grocery store. Not for groceries, though. For caffeine. A pop. And a BIG one at that.

I took a few steps out the front door and realized my toddler was naked, except for a tank top. Quickly, I found a pair of training underpants (the kind that are thicker in the middle), a well-worn pair of sandals, and her sunglasses, and we were off in search of caffeine.

Got it, returned home with one of the really, really big Cokes, and now have to pack for a camping trip to the river tonight when my husband returns from work.

And as you all know, packing for a family of five...even for one night of camping...is a HUGE chore.

We'll be late in leaving, I'm sure.

But I don't care. I'm too tired to care.

So Lord, please, give me rest, PLEASE, while we camp in the mountains. I need it...desperately.