Confession.. My kids have too many toys.. It really is a problem!

I have this issue with toys... I HATE THEM!  I hate having them all over my house. I find them in my bedroom, my bedroom closet, the bathrooms,  the bathroom toilet (Thanks Hawk ;)), the fridge and the kitchen. I tell my boys at least 3 times a day to put their toys in their playroom. I am so OCD I literally have a spot for every single toy. So, this is what the playroom should look like...

Books stacked nicely on the shelf, masks hung, costumes underneath the masks, big toys in the big basket and cars, Ninja Turtles, Power Rangers, Super Heroes, and some other misc. things in the Spiderman organizer. I wish the playroom always looked like this! I would be the happiest Mom in the world... BUT... this is what the playroom usually looks like on a day to day basis...

DON'T BE ALARMED! An earthquake did not come through our home.. this was all done by two very energetic, messy little boys! 

For the past two days I have asked the boys to clean up their playroom. I took away video games, phones, playing outside, playing, eating (no, not really that would be bad!), basically anything fun until it was clean. Instead of getting the beautiful clean playroom I wanted I got a whole lot of complaining... mostly from Reef because as my family likes to say, "Reef is a lazy Samoan!" I got the following, "my feet hurt, I can't walk!", "my tummy hurts too much!", "I think I'm too sick to clean!", "I'm gonna run away to Nama Margie's house!", "You are the meanest Mommy ever!", "I didn't even make this mess!", "This is the worst thing ever!", "Other little boys don't have to clean their playrooms!", "What? You aren't gonna help me?", "I accidentally locked the playroom door.." Seriously the list could go on and on! There were a couple of times that I didn't get any complaining so I thought they were actually cleaning, only to walk in and find them playing in an even big mess than before.

Now my Hawky boy... He gets the job done! It just may not always be the way I want it..

He throws Every. Single. Toy. in the closet! Honestly, its better than nothing at all- I'll take it... That is until my OCD kicks in and I go clean in myself. So, my dilemma is what do I do about this? Do I throw away all their toys so they can't make these insane messes anymore? Do I stop buying toys? Do I make them clean it up every single night before bed? I just don't know. The only thing I know for sure is they are making memories together. There is nothing better than hearing the laughs, the stories, the imagination that comes from that playroom. I honestly think I am willing to deal with the mess because that makes it all worth it.. most of the time ;)

Side note: Reef just walked up to me as I was posting these pictures and asked, "Who took that picture? Why is that picture up there?" I let him know that I was blogging about their messy playroom. In which he responded with an, "Uugghhh!!!!"

I am HIS daughter.

I had a HORRIBLE delivery with Briar. My labor with Reef lasted 6 hours and my labor with Hawk lasted 5... With Briar... it lasted 16 hours. To make matters worse, by the time I was ready to push, my epidural had worn off from my waist up. I felt every tear, contraction, push.. it was awful. I had to be stitched from one end the other, internally and externally. As you could imagine, I had a pretty painful recovery. I was lucky enough to have my sister and mom here when I came home and then the week after that my mother in law came. They were my saving graces for sure! BUT after they left and my husband had to go back to work, I was alone.. You are probably thinking, "Wow.. it couldn't have been that bad.. dramatic much??" BUT for me, it really was. I had to learn to be a mom of three, with not much help (my husband works 10 hours a day, he leaves at noon and doesn't get home until about 10PM), while in pain, no sleep, and no car to get us out of the house (not like I would even attempt to do that on my own) to save us from insanity. I really felt like I was losing it. I would go into my room, lock the door and just cry. I remember one day in particular, I was having a difficult time breast feeding. It was especially painful on one side and I was feeling like I should stop nursing on that side all together. I just had such a problem with quitting. I didn't want to have to supplement. We are blessed with the ability to nurse for a reason, so how could I just give up and give my baby formula? I really started to feel like I was failing as a mother. I just broke down. I had lost it. I pleaded with my Father in Heaven to just help me heal quickly and to give me reassurance that I was a good mom and that I was doing the best I could. It was in that moment that I realized I NEED my Heavenly Father, I NEED my Savior. They are real, they live, and they are always there to help us in times of trial. I immediately felt this sense of peace and a calm washed over me. My sweet Reef came in and gave me a hug and said, "I love you Mommy! You are the best Mommy I ever had, don't be sad!" That is exactly what I needed to hear. My kids think I am the best mommy in the world, they love me, they adore me and think I am the greatest. I truly believe my Father in Heaven used my son as his way of letting me know that I am doing ok, that I am doing the best I can and my kids can see that. I am so incredibly grateful for my Father in Heaven.  I am his daughter, he cares about me, he is aware of my needs, insecurities, and my fears. He is there to strengthen me, uplift me, and comfort me.  I truly would be lost without him. I was scrolling through youtube and I came across this song. It brought tears to my eyes and gave me so much comfort. I felt this overwhelming need to share it with you all. I hope it touches you the way it did me.