All I heard was noise. All she saw were blessings

All I heard was the noise...

I wanted to eat breakfast. But instead I attempted to referee my three boys as one refused the yogurt I was trying to feed him, one repeatedly fell out of his chair and one kept asking for things- more juice, a napkin, a straw. 

Jason and I had very little sleep the night before as we to share a hotel room with all three of our boys. We were excited to be on a trip, but as anyone who has ever traveled with little kids can tell you... it’s exhausting. 

So here we were sitting at the hotel breakfast attempting to persuade our toddler to eat, convince our kindergartener that he could get his own napkin off the buffet and repeatedly shush our very loud preschooler. 

I poured milk, wiped faces and dodged an elbow to the face. And once again my four-year-old was under the table. “These people probably think I don’t discipline my kids,” I thought. 

And then the baby started screaming. Why? Because apparently, that’s what one-year-olds do. 

I gave my husband the look that told him it was time to leave. We cleared our table and were heading out of the dining room when the lady at the table next to me said “they are precious. You are so blessed.”

It stopped me in my tracks. I have three boys all 6 and under. I hear a lot of things from strangers. I get a lot of “you’ve got your hands full.” Or “you must really be tired.” 

But the lady looked at me and smiled. “You are so blessed,” she said. 

Where I heard loud, she heard laughter. Where I saw frustration, she saw childhood memories being made. When I shook my head in frustration, she nodded fondly, probably remember when her now grown children were little. 

All I heard was noise, but all she saw were my blessings. And she was right. She is right. I am so blessed. I smiled and told her thank you before scooping up a baby and grabbing another hand tightly. I kissed my baby's face and mussed my preschoolers hair and then I nodded, yeah, I really am so blessed.