Why do it?

Well, here I am again. I don’t have a video just yet but I have two in the works. A lot of things have happened to the babies and I have been dutifully videotaping these things. I just haven’t found enough time to go and actually make real videos out of everything but I plan to soon. I have decided to blog a little bit more and see if I can get in one video a month. I think that ought to be just about right.

Today, I was in the airport on my way back from a conference in Las Vegas and I went to a store in the airport to get a smoothie. I really like smoothies and have a really good recipe that Rachelle and I came up with but that is another story. In this smoothie store was a sign that read:

If it isn’t fun, why do it?

As I read that sign, I decided that it may have been one of the most profoundly stupid things I had ever heard. As I was waiting for my smoothie to blend, I sat there and pondered all of the things that were not fun but were definitely “worth it”. Some of the ones I thought of were:

• Exercising regularly (at least I assume this is worth it since I don’t really do it)
• Getting a root canal when you need one. (Again, I have to assume on this one)
• Have ANY kind of surgery when you really need it. (I have been a witness to this one so I at least know it is accurate)
• Repairing your car (Have had to do this many times and it is painful but better than walking)
• Learning to do math (Riley is currently going through this one and I keep trying to tell him it will one day be worth it.)

And one of most important not-fun-but-worth-it things is raising kids. I had been at the conference for about four days and I was really missing Rachelle and the kids. It is times like that when you can look and see that it really is worth it. Most of the time, a mom or a dad like Rachelle or me is just trying to get by from day to day and keep from going insane. However, when you can step back and see how wonderful your kids are and how wonderful it is to have kids, you realize that it is all worth it.

A little later I started thinking that maybe the sign in the smoothie shop was actually meant to make me think of all the things that ARE worth it even though they are not fun. If so, it was effective because I started thinking about how I really appreciate many of the difficult things I have gone through because of what I have learned from them. I think I will give them the benefit of the doubt and say that their true intention was to make me a better person and not to suggest that I simply should be buying more sugar-filled smoothies (because they are fun) instead of eating healthy and bad tasting food (because it is not fun).

Now, I did say that I am planning on having a video, and I really will just as soon as I can find time to stop having so much fun with my cute but runny-nosed babies.