Seeing the humor in the madness
One of the biggest blessings in my life is being able to work from home. It gives me the flexibility to juggle six kids, run the never-ending carpool route, and still sneak in a meeting or two (sometimes with a toddler balanced on my hip).
But let’s be real: working from home with kids also means chaos is always lurking just around the corner.
Our nearly two-year-old, also known as “monkey boy,” is usually my sidekick. With childcare prices what they are, we don’t have a consistent babysitter, so he’s almost always in the house with me—lurking in the background of Zoom calls, climbing furniture like it’s his job, or discovering new and creative ways to test my sanity.
Usually, my husband (who also works from home) and I tag-team. He’s the CM Punk to my AJ Lee (for all you wrestling fans out there) and it mostly works. But then there are those moments when we both have meetings at the exact same time. That’s when I whisper a desperate prayer that I’ll get through it without a toddler meltdown, without my camera accidentally flipping on to reveal my ravioli-stained tank top, and without my “messy bun” (which is more like “mound of hair” with a scrunchie peeking out) stealing the spotlight.
This particular day, I thought I nailed it. A full hour-long meeting with no tantrums, no interruptions, no wardrobe malfunctions. Victory!
Or so I thought.
As soon as I hung up, I heard a sweet little voice chirping from the kitchen:
“I done. I done. I done eggs.”
My heart dropped. Eggs?
I rounded the corner and sure enough, there he was—standing proudly on the kitchen island, surrounded by three dozen smashed fresh chicken eggs. Yolk everywhere. Eggshells stuck to his diaper. And a grin that could have melted steel.
He looked so proud, like he had just created a Michelin-star breakfast masterpiece. Me? I just laughed, because what else can you do?
I scooped him up and headed for the sink… only to realize the water company had left me a voicemail during my meeting. A main broke. No water. Fantastic.
So there I was, wiping down an egg-covered toddler with baby wipes and using an entire box of Swiffer wet mop refills to clean the kitchen.
And you know what? Somewhere between the mess and the madness, I found myself smiling. Because this is real life. These are the stories we’ll laugh about later. These are the reminders that even when life feels out of control, God’s still right there in the middle of it.
Proverbs 17:22 says:
“A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.”
That verse is taped to my heart on days like these. Yes, eggs were lost. Yes, my kitchen looked like a war zone. But my son was safe, my work got done, and laughter turned what could have been a meltdown into a memory.
And when the day feels heavy and the mess too much to clean, I think of Lamentations 3:22–23:
“Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.”
Even if that morning starts with 36 smashed eggs.