Monday, Mouth Spray and the Supply Closet

Today is Monday. If you keep up with my blog, you know that Mondays and Fridays are two of Joshua's most favorite days. Why? Because he doesn't have to get up early to go anywhere...and because I usually fix blueberry muffins for breakfast on those days.

Except that last night, as I frantically searched through the pantry, I came to the realization that Momma didn't have no muffins...and I was concerned that it might bring life as we know it to a screeching halt.

Around here, anyway. 

When Joshua finally came downstairs for breakfast, I told him I didn't have any muffins this morning. He looked at me, sighed real big, and said, "that's fiiiiiin." Then he croc'd, croc'd, croc'd into the kitchen.

Nothing like an epic mom fail at 8 a.m.

After he ate HIS POP-TART, he came to tell me that he had added some items to our grocery list. Items like mouth spray, mouth wash and body wash.

And "nanners."

I have a "supply closet" in our house. It's just the "linen" closet in the hallway where I keep sheets and towels and stuff...and also some extra items of the things we use most. It's something my mother-in-law has at her house, only it's her "utility room." Actually, she pronounces it, "you-TIL-tee room." Anyway, we all know that not only does she keep her washer and dryer in there, she also keeps shelves and shelves of canned goods, dry goods, and household items that she buys in bulk. When we go to her house, we all "shop" in there for the things that we use.

As well as things we do not use, if you are my husband.

Which is how I ended up with 8 individual containers of microwaveable mac and cheese, and 4 individual containers of microwaveable brown rice. I highly doubt we will end up using them, and I'll probably end up taking them all back over the Christmas break. (sigh)

And, OH MY GOODNESS, we are so thankful for my mother-in-law's "you-TIL-tee" room and all the goodies in there. It has been a life-saver for us over the years. Never mind that I haven't bought toilet paper since 1988...

Which, I have no idea why she got on the toilet-paper-buying wagon, but she did...and we have never been more grateful.

Well. Wait. It might have been that way back in 1981, when I graduated from college, I announced (in a very non-dramatic and Gone-With-The-Wind-ish way), that "as God as my witness, I will never use that rough dorm-room toilet paper evah again!" And maybe she just took that to heart.

Whatever happened, there I was...big pregnant with Holly and in line at the Wal-Marks with a buggy FULL of Charmin toilet paper. Three different times, three different ladies asked us if it was "on special," and my mother-in-law said, "no, I'm just helping out my daughter-in-law..." and then proceeded to tell them her whole life story. And I just stood there, staring at the floor and looking like I had some sort of condition that required my mother-in-law to buy me 120 rolls of toilet paper.

Oh, and my mother-in-law calls it, "toilet tish-ah."

I haven't bought toilet tish-ah since 1988.

And there were many times that we...and by "we" I mean JIM...brought home cans of "beanie-weenies" by the droves. No.thank.you. Another favorite his mom bought and I didn't were cans of "Vienna sausages." Jim would put them on crackers. If you aren't from the South...or, better yet, LA (that's Lower Arkansas, people)...you might think you pronounce that "Vienna"...like the city. And maybe that's how you're supposed to say it. My husband, and his whole, entire family, call them "VI-EENIE sausages."

There is no way on earth or under Heaven that I will ever eat a VI-EENIE sausage from a can. Blech.

But, even tho Jim occasionally brings home items we don't use, he also brings home items we DO use...as evidenced by the approximately 147 rolls of Charmin toilet paper we  have in our home as we speak.

Not.even.kidding.

So I said, "Joshua, did you look in the supply closet?" I thought there was a pretty good chance that I had body wash and mouth wash in there. And, something in the back of my mind made me think that I had put some of Joshua's mouth spray in there. Because, as I think I've mentioned before, I do not want to live in a world where Joshua is out of mouth spray. No ma'am. Not ever.

So, Joshua goes, "oh, yeah," and headed back there. Sure 'nuff, I had several different kinds of body wash and mouth wash for him to choose from. My eyes were scouring the shelves, when Joshua said, "oh, HEYYYYY...there's some mouth spray in here!"

Thank you, Jesus.

Joshua was so tickled. If you know anything about people who have Down Syndrome, you know that they "self-talk." Jim calls it "mumbling." We will hear Joshua talking upstairs, and think that he's on the phone. I'll holler up at him and ask, "who are you talking to?" And he'll call down, "MYSELF!"

So, as Joshua is walking up the stairs to his room, he's got all of his supplies in his arms and he's kind of mumbling, "I didn't know it would be in the supply closet. I should've looked there first. I didn't know there would be MOUTH SPRAY in the supply closet. Mom must've gotten it and put it in there because I didn't know there would be MOUTH SPRAY in the supply closet. I thought I was out but then I found more. I will have to take it off the list. Heeheeheehee."

There were many times when our kids were little when I just didn't have the extra to put in my supply closet, altho it was always my goal. Most of the time, I was doing good to keep up with just what we needed. Things were chaotic and so very busy. But now, with just two kids at home, I try to keep some extra stuff in there. And not just for our house, but for our kids and their homes as well...just like my mother-in-law always has. In fact, the other day, when Logan and Morgan were here, it blessed my heart so much to see them standing in front of the supply closet, looking at all the stuff in there...picking and choosing what they wanted to take to their own home.

And so it continues.

You know, the Bible says that God will supply all of our needs. In my mind, I imagine that it's like a huge supply closet that is never empty. He has everything we need in there...all the patience, all the love, all the peace, all the faith, all the guidance. Need joy? God has it. Need answers? God has them. He is always prepared. He has everything we need. We only need to ask.

"And my God will liberally supply (fill to the full) your every need according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:19