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Maggie Whitley

joy in motherhood, homemaking, faith & simple living

You are here: Home / lifestyle / mamahood / The colors of motherhood.

The colors of motherhood.

November 5, 2019 · 9 Comments
Filed Under: mamahood

Last week after naps, I gathered my tribe of small people to zip coats and buckle seat belts. While out running errands we shopped for nail polish and birthday party things (my sweet Natalie has turned FIVE).

I’ve never bought five bottles of nail polish before, but I suppose that’s what happens when you have two daughters who love nail polish?

Oh, the tiny details of life. They are the important details, this I know.

You can probably guess what I did once we returned home…

While dinner baked, the wet polish dried. While my girls sat at the table with their hands squishing paper napkins down, I peeked around the corner to catch glimpses of their happiness.

I could feel it.

It was lovely for me to experience, because motherhood can be so slow at showing a return on investment.

A couple of hours passed, the kids were in bed, and I finally agreed to paint my own nails this color. It’s something I really love to do, something I’ve done as long as I can remember, but also something I haven’t done much of this year.

Four children, you know? Someone always needs a little help, someone always wants/needs to hold hands, and I don’t dare count how many times I push down on the soap dispenser.

This year, my hands have been busier than ever.

But last week I came to realize it’s the tiny flash of color on my nails that I long to have accompany me throughout my mothering days.

Throughout this intense, busy, joyful role of motherhood, it’s the flash of color that helps my soul settle.

Amongst all the beige and nude and taupe, the repetitive rhythms of our day, there ARE vibrant colors to be found.

Are we looking for them?

Motherhood is more than the white powdering of bottoms.

It’s the squirt of red ketchup on a plate.

Teeny tiny blue LEGOs.

Motherhood is golden hair running down the hallway.

Abstract lines of purple marker (drawn on her arms and legs).

Motherhood is hardly green, mostly yellow leaves collecting just inside my back door. Don’t blink; this season is soon be changing.

It’s the color of dark broom bristles sweeping leaves back out.

It’s the pearlized bubbles floating up from the sink.

Motherhood is a pile of pink on their bedroom floor: books, babies, blankets, backpacks.

And just as rewarding, although in such a different way, motherhood is pulling your fellow sisters alongside as you squeeze them tight to affirm: you are loved! you are doing hard, important work! your sacrifice is seen by Him, these are not wasted efforts! come over anytime for a meal, my door is always open for you.

And so, the tiny flashes of color painted on my nails reminds me of the many ways I care for those around me.

Color here; color there, too.

Our lives do have beautiful color.

The question I beg to ask is this: do we only see beige and powdery white? Or, do we see the vibrant, colorful flashes of motherhood?

May you see the vibrant colors of your mothering, today and aways. 

xx

PS. from the MWD archives: 10 easy ways to grant yourself the gift of self-care, and a simple shift of the mind

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9 Comments
Filed Under: mamahood

« What is your rhythm for self-care?
MAKE IT: learn to watercolor with your children! »

Comments

  1. Barbara Storey says

    November 5, 2019 at 9:24 am

    Good morning sweet Maggie,
    I came to my porch this morning with my special flavored coffee, getting my thoughts in order and then peeked at my mail and there was Maggie!
    What a wonderful way to start my day with a letter from Maggie telling me of her newest “treat for Mom”.
    My heart smiles, seeing you and your babies! I bask in the love that I see there and thank God for the Mama that you are!

    I should tell you that all my Great Grandchildren are called “babies”. I have 12 now with two in college and one away at dance school. Then there are my youngest four babies, who I look forward to hearing about their little lives.
    Thank you Maggie for loving my babies and for being the best Mom I know!
    Please give Papa Zack a hug from Grambarb!
    Love you.

    Reply
    • Maggie Whitley says

      November 12, 2019 at 11:43 am

      It’s always a treat to hear from you!

      Reply
  2. ZW says

    November 5, 2019 at 1:14 pm

    Magg you bring tears to my eyes. More precious than rubies you are. I will always remember these years the way you describe them here. Not the stress, not the struggle for “free time”, but the love, the lessons, the endless gifts. The way you appreciate them no matter how long the race or intense the struggle, you see what God sees when you reflect.

    Hi Grambarb. She takes good care of me. Of all of us. I’m so proud of her.

    Reply
    • Maggie Whitley says

      November 12, 2019 at 11:44 am

      Thank you Zack. It’s good to pull back and look at life the way God does, His perspective is perfect and it’s quite the view… yes? What a generous God we serve.

      Reply
  3. Mom Whitley says

    November 5, 2019 at 10:27 pm

    Tears of joy along with extreme gratefulness for the way Jesus is shaping and molding you and this lovely family more and more each and every day. Thank you both for the way you choose to invest in their precious little lives and each other.

    Reply
    • Maggie Whitley says

      November 12, 2019 at 11:45 am

      Thank you mom. My life would be so boring if I kept on living with clenched fists.

      Reply
  4. Amanda says

    November 11, 2019 at 11:54 am

    Maggie, your writing is so beautiful and inspiring. If you ever write a book, I would be one of the first to read it!

    Reply
    • Maggie Whitley says

      November 12, 2019 at 11:45 am

      Thank you!!! Wow!!! :)

      Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Thirteen thoughts in November. - Maggie Whitley Designs says:
    November 29, 2019 at 7:00 am

    […] writing I’ve accomplished this month. Here are my recent blog posts, in case you missed them: the colors of motherhood, learn how to watercolor with your children (includes a 25% off discount code), and a Gussy Sews […]

    Reply

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ABOUT MAGGIE WHITLEY DESIGNS:
Maggie Whitley weaves her writings around joy in motherhood, homemaking, faith, and simple living. She homeschools her children, enjoys a quiet room while reading, and roars with laughter over the challenges & delights of motherhood. Maggie and her husband, along with their four young children, live in northern Michigan. She has been writing online since 2008.
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