I could literally look at his shirt when he came home from school and tell him what he had for lunch. I always knew if they had worked on an art project or played outside by looking at his clothes. Back then, I was somewhat uptight...always wanted things to be neat and clean, so Chris constantly challenged me with his spills and messes.
One day when I got upset and said, "Chris, look at your shirt" as he was so proudly wearing about a 1/2 cup of chili on his new shirt that had fallen from the chili dogs at lunch, his very favorite food of all. As I stood there mortified, he calmly responded with "it'll wash!" I couldn't be mad any longer with that matter-of-fact look on his face. I stood there thinking, yes, it will. It will wash.
Over the years, when I get flustered or upset over small things, I hear his sweet little voice in my head saying "it'll wash"....and suddenly I have a different perspective on the situation. How many times have we gotten really upset over something and then later thought, that wasn't such a big deal, why did I do that? I admit, I've done it many times. But I have to remind myself that in the grand scheme of things, it's pretty trivial, and it'll wash.
Kinda reminds me of the verse "this, too, shall pass..." So, hang in there, Mamas, and know that it's OK to relax and let your kids get dirty and make messes. It's all a part of their AND our growing process. And I know this is hard to believe, but some day, you'll miss their little messes.