too many shoes

There came a point when my parents' house had too many shoes. In my opinion, it was a household hazard, as you sometimes would trip over these shoes, or have to dig for the match. I'm talking about the "shoe zone" that happens at the entrance to any house. In our family's case, there are 2 parents, 6 kids, 4 of which are married, and 7 grandchildren. Add that up, and you have the mecca of all tripping zones.

But to my mom, this zone has always been a happy zone, because to her the more the shoes, the more of her family was home. Except for my brother who is a Senior in High School, we have all left home and started lives of our own. The shoes remind mom of happy memories, and a house full of way too much laughing, teasing, Sound of Music sing-offs, piano playing, babies crying, and someone upset because sister-who-shall-not-be-named wore another sister's shirt to school without asking.

I wouldn't say I'm to the point of enjoying the "shoe zone." I know someday I will miss the trails of toys, the arms constantly reaching up for me to hold she-who-shall-not-be-named, the nightly puppet shows, the kid forks, and oh so much more.

Case in point, I try to make sure my kids' faces are relatively clean before snapping some pictures. But then again, how can I resist this?

I would love to think my table always looks like this

But often times, it seems by the end of the day I'm staring at this

and when I hop in the shower, I would like to think it looks like this

when at times, it looks like this

But when I see faces like these

and these

and baths like this

and this

I can't help but thank my lucky stars for the ongoing trails I see each and everyday.