It’s Not About the Laundry – Thoughts on Life and Motherhood
Are you overwhelmed by the never-ending job of laundry? We have something that will completely change your perspective.
There are days when I feel like I’m drowning in laundry.
With 6 kids, the laundry is never “finished”, it’s just this crazy-making cycle of “pick your clothes up off the bathroom floor” to “your socks are in the laundry basket in the hall”.
I work full-time from home while raising 6 kids — but it’s really the laundry that is going to send me over the edge.
As one of the many unfinishable jobs that come along with being a mom, laundry is always in the back of my mind. I’ll be working on meeting a project deadline and wondering if my middle schooler’s gym uniform is going to be out of the wash before he needs it for school.
It occurred to me though, during one of my many frustrating sessions trying to match all the mismatched socks in our bottomless sock basket, that it isn’t about the laundry.
The goal is not clean underwear laid out nicely in each drawer and wrinkle free shirts hanging up in every closet.
The goal is not matched socks (thank goodness for that!).
The laundry is not just the laundry.
Every basket of clothes that goes in the abyss of the laundry room and comes out the other end, clean and ready to go, means my kids are taken care of and ready to tackle the next exciting thing in their life.
- Clean clothes mean my kids can go to school and learn the things they need to know to be successful.
- A clean football uniform means my son can experience the satisfaction of working together towards a common goal on a team.
- Clean shirts and ties mean my kids can go to church on Sunday and nurture their spiritual side so that when they are faced with difficult challenges they can keep things in perspective.
- Clean bathing suits mean my kids can learn how to be strong swimmers so they can have fun and be safe.
- Clean blankets mean that my kids can have something ready to lay in the grass in our backyard and look at the stars at night or hang out with their friends.
So the laundry, is an unfinishable job — just as it should be.
The laundry, is about giving kids what they need to have amazing experiences. It is raising children and showing them that they are loved and cared for.
I hope my kids never stop discovering new things they love and working hard to reach their goals. I hope they come home with sweaty clothes, muddy shoes, and jeans with holes in them.
I hope they come home tired and happy . . . so tired that sometimes they put their laundry on the floor next to the laundry basket instead of inside it.
I hope my toddlers have lots of shirts stained with melted popsicles and my preschooler has jeans with paint spilled on them.
Most of all, I hope I remember that the mountain of laundry that is always waiting for me is not just another task to be done, but a physical reminder that I have so many little people in my life to love.
If you are still struggling, check out the 3 things I recommend you do when you are overwhelmed.
Pin it for Later
This reminds me so much of some of the things that I write! Thanks for the laugh. I’m pinning on my Chaotic Motherhood board.
Laundry was something that had me spinning my wheels and took up way too much time than it should have. I actually recently had my laundry washed, dried, and folded for me so that I could spend more time with my kids and it was such an amazing experience that alleviated so much stress for me. I have always known that doing it myself was a service to my family, but it was also driving me totally crazy.