The Night of Endless Vomit (Oh no, she didn't!)

I witnessed a dad tonight who deserved a medal. I was sitting in Starbucks with my laptop when, out of the corner of my eye, I saw his 3 or 4 year old daughter start to throw up all over the floor. He calmly came to her side, tried to comfort her and then walked up to the counter and asked for a mop.

The girls that work at this particular Starbucks happen to think that anyone who walks in to their store is seriously interrupting their opportunities to catch up on "so-and-so did such-and-such with what's-his-face the other night - OMG" - and this scenario was no exception. They were right in the middle of a juicy story when the barfing went down. They didn't even attempt to help him clean up, or offer any shred of sympathy.

On my way home, I was reflecting on how much parenting requires of us. I opened the garage door, walked into my house and was greeted by an awful stench. Vomit appearance #2 of the night.

Our dog was in his kennel surrounded by barf. All over his bed. All over the floor. All over his blanket. I cleaned up the bed, cleaned up the kennel, only to discover that it was all over his fur too. I hauled him upstairs to throw him in the tub. I finally had everything cleaned, dinner started, and the laundry going when I heard him start to gag again. I yelled. He ran. Vomit followed.

I called Adam for help, and to make him feel bad that he was at work missing out on all this excitement. As I was cleaning up vomit appearance #3, I heard Joren down the hallway say "Mom, I accidentally pooped a little". The timing was incredible.

I spent the rest of the evening scrubbing floors, children's butts, doing laundry, dishes, and trying not to yell at the dog anymore. I could see him cower every time I got close.

As I was covering every surface with bleach spray or Resolve, a Steven Curtis Chapman popped into my head that is based on Colossians 3:23 "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men." Can it be possible? Can cleaning up vomit be an act of worship? I realized in that moment that I could CHOOSE to be joyful, find some humor in the situation, and open my heart to what God was teaching me. Could I use a little more patience? Yep. Point taken.

This is a great video and a fantastic way to start the week. "Do everything you do to the glory of the one who made you!'