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Or are we always at the Zoo? Life in our household is always a little zoo-like. Animals everywhere. Random toys, kids, and pets all through the house and yard. I call it "organized chaos." But it's always fun.
On Sunday, we took the girls up to the Oregon Zoo, in Portland. We thought the hippos were statues at first, they were so still. It was almost creepy!
The girls had a great time with their 5 cousins! Aren't they a good looking crew?
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But, taking your kids to see the animals only makes it more obvious how parenting is a lot like being at the Zoo.... Let me explain.
If you're not hanging upside down, your kids are.
There are always mountains to climb. The question is, are you climbing up, or down?
Often we wonder why the proverbial horse gets us nowhere. No one said parenting is easy. Yet, it can be extremely rewarding...
Daily, we struggle with removing spots. It is NOT, however, productive to try and remove those spots with your tongue. It's always best to choose your battles.
We try to remember, and teach our kids, that it's not the stripes that matter.
There's a chinese proverb that says, "You can not prevent the birds of sorrow from flying over your head, but you can prevent them from building a nest in your hair." I take this to mean that sometimes you have to do the hard things NOW, to prevent things from being even harder down the road.
And lastly, there is nothing better than seeing wonder, amazement and joy on the face of a child. Nothing.
"Love is an act of endless forgiveness, a tender look which becomes a
habit." ~ Peter Ustinov
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