Chris and I just bought a toy chest for Scarlett’s bedroom. I got so excited, we painted it coral to match the nursery and used some left over magnetic chalkboard paint to keep Scarlett busy during her terrible twos (or when she has enough strength in her arms to actually pick up a piece of chalk and do something productive with it…and by productive I mean, not stick it in her mouth). The intention of this new toy chest is that the toys would be stored in one place. We have had the chest for two weeks now and surprise the toys are still all over the house. On the blanket spread out in the living room from play time the night before, on shelves, on the couch and on our bed. The reality is, kids don’t play in one place and in fact, Scarlett has only played once on her bedroom floor where the empty toy chest currently sits waiting to fulfill its duty. Although the toy chest was a brilliant idea, I realize now that one of the joys of motherhood is stepping on a toy left in the hallway or kicking a stuffed animal to the bottom of the bed in the middle of the night. I embrace these new joys by smiling at Scarlett as she absentmindedly moves from one toy to the next, by picking up the unwanted ones from the living room floor, and laughing quitely to myself when I find a sippy cup hiding at the botton of the sheets. I soak up these new "unwanted" chores knowing that with them comes love, laughter and life.