The things a mother will do...

There are lots of things I've done because I'm a mother. It's like that title automatically forces you to do un-natural things. Many of which I wouldn't dreamed of having done BK (before kids).

Throwing myself in the trajectory of my child's vomit so it won't get on my freshly washed rug(it seemed easier to wash myself than wash the rug again).

Cleaning poop of the cabinets, floor, and walls when a certain child of mine decided to use it as fingerpaint (where was I while this was happening, you ask? Feeding another child).

Declining a really fun party invitation because it was in direct conflict with nap time. (I know this sounds so lame, but really, it ends up being in my best interest).

Getting out of bed every hour overnight to check on a child with a really high fever.

Sacrifing my highly desired cookie/cake/smoothie/roll/whatever food I am really enjoying so that they can have it instead--it's like they have some sort of radar and they find me when I'm eating something yummy!

Making sure my kids are bathed and cleanly dressed, but then running out of time to do so myself.

You get the picture, right? I know all of you mothers out there are with me.

And darn it, today I had to do it again.

I put the boys all down for naps and they were quietly just about to fall asleep (this is a rare occasion). You know that state where you're sort of out of it but not quite asleep yet? Well, they were there.

And then it gets really gray and scary looking outside and starts hailing marble-sized hail. I turned on the TV to check the weather just in time to hear the weatherman say that everyone living in neighborhood needs to be in the basement immediately because of a potential tornado. Did I mention Denver has been having bizarre weather all week??!! Anyway, I listened to him say this about 5 times before I begrudgingly walked back upstairs to get them.

After all, I suppose having safe, alive children is more important than naptime--even while taking into account the old but true addage: "Never wake a sleeping baby". So I did the good "motherly" thing and woke them up and hauled them to the basement. They were all confused and scared because it was hailing so hard I had to shout for them to hear me. Plus, Joel had decided to sleep in his underwear and I felt it was important for him to be dressed just in case the roof blew off our house. You know, priorities.

Of course then they just thought the whole thing was really exciting and after the storm passed, naptime was but a fond memory.

I'll be paying for this all afternoon.

But I made a "good choice" as we like to encourage Joel to do. Maybe he'll give me a gold star on my behavior chart.

Or maybe I'll just make cookies and eat them somewhere where I know they won't find me :).