Yesterday was a beautiful day. The kids were getting along well, thinking of others, and when we pulled out the sprinkler obstacle course we’d gotten at Aldi the day before, they played happily together for almost an hour, giggling and squealing with delight.

We followed up with frozen juice pops on the deck, and all seemed, more or less, right with the world.

Today, we tried to repeat that magical moment. Same weather. Same kids. Same equipment (even added a kiddie pool). Same time of day. 

Did the same magic happen? 

No. We had fighting, sprinkler malfunctions, potty emergencies that caused emotional distress because she was missing out on the “fun”, swarms of mosquitoes ignoring our bug spray, and we ended in consequences rather than rewards.

Did we do anything wrong? Anything differently that caused one day to be magic but not the other? 

No. I don’t think so. Some days you see the fruits of your efforts, and other days you’re weeding, sweating, and dealing with the hard stuff. And that’s ok.