Angsty Teenagers and Moving Chaos

Let me tell you about last night.

We had just finished moving furniture around so that my three youngest kids could share the same room with a little separation in our giant room. Our office is now in a smaller area. It was a long, chaotic day.

My oldest was the most helpful. He is a football kid with the muscles and strength I don’t have. My husband tried moving a bookcase first, and part of it broke apart, crashing down on his knees. Not his fault, but it put him out of commission, so he ended up on baby duty downstairs with the littlest ones.

By the time we were done, we were exhausted. We wanted to do something special for the kids, so we asked where they wanted to eat. Cue the teenage indecision. They each changed their minds about seven times. They all wanted to go to a buffet, which I vetoed because of indigestion.

Eventually, my fourteen-year-old settled on Chili’s. The eleven-year-old and eight-year-old wanted Texas Roadhouse. Fine. We decided on Texas Roadhouse.

Then came the waiting. My son was not happy about the hour-long wait, even though we called ahead. He pouted. I tried a big mom-hug strategy, telling him how much I appreciated his help that day and that he would enjoy the steak once we got there. Teenager mode activated, but the hug seemed to melt some of the hard edges.

He was moody in the car and did not want to get out when we arrived. I let him sit while the rest of us went in, thinking it might cool him down. By the time he saw the menu, he cheered up. True to fourteen-year-old form, he tried to get the most expensive thing, a twelve-ounce prime rib, which my husband wisely vetoed. He settled on an eleven-ounce sirloin, ate almost all of it, and left only a small piece of baked potato to save for later.

After dinner, we came home and continued moving. We set up my five-year-old’s bed, cleared out my two-year-old’s crib, and got things out of the way. The boys slept together for the first time that night. The room is not fully divided yet, toys are everywhere, and I am sitting here procrastinating about dealing with it because it is overwhelming.

Moving within our house is always a nightmare. We have done it a few times now, and honestly, I am not sure we have fully recovered from the last shuffle. Originally, we had four kids and four bedrooms, which worked out. Then number five came, so the two youngest boys shared a room, and my daughter moved into the largest bedroom. Then number six arrived, a little girl, and she currently is in our room. There is a ten-year age gap between my daughters, so Danielle will go in with the youngest boys for a while. No need for a 6 year old to witness a boy-crazy 16 year old conversation (here in 5 years), so this arrangement works for now.

Eventually, when the older kids start heading off to college, we will reevaluate. Until then, it is chaos, noise, and a whole lot of love.

Kristian

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Think about every photo you’ve taken of your children, every memory you’ve preserved for them. You deserve that same love and attention. Come to Kristian Hutchings Portraits, let me pamper you from start to finish, and leave with portraits that show the beauty, strength, and grace you give the world every day. Motherhood is part of our legacy and we should leave our children and grandchildren a true reflection of our beauty to remember us by.

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Kristian is a mom of six, Program Manager by day, active Professional Photographer by trade, and a big believer in finding beauty in the everyday chaos.

Life in our house is loud, messy and full of literally everything. Love, noise, laundry, laughter, and definitely could use a bit more grace. I'm happily married to my best friend, grounded in my Catholic faith, and fueled by five to six hours of sleep per night and adrenaline.

I try to find joy in the everyday — even when it's wild, because without the little bit of joy, this life would be unbearable. This space is for the moms in the middle of it all: the ones juggling family, faith, work, and wonder. The ones that need someone else's messy life to make their own seem better or somewhat normal. You're not alone, and you're doing better than you think.

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