Why is it so hard to say yes...

And so easy to say no?  I was clearing the table after dinner tonight and trying to figure out if it was possible to freeze any of our leftovers.  The kids and are leaving Dr. J home alone for four weeks and while my sister says I should just let him fend for himself (She thinks it would go a long way toward appreciation) I can't stomach the idea of him eating white castle for four weeks.  So to try to stave off starvation and the inevitable food desert that my house will become when I'm not here to do the shopping and cooking I've been freezing extra's here and there and building up a supply of one serving freezer meals that just need to be heated up.  So while I was looking at my dinner leftovers trying to figure out how to best package them Peach ran up and asked me to play duck, duck, goose, and the word immediately out of my mouth were "No, can you go ask you sister."  "She's busy too," she told me as she slunk off to the couch.  I looked over at her and something about her sulk just made me so sad.  So I left my left overs on the counter and I walked over to her and told her I was ready to play.  The older's who were sitting on the couch playing itouch were intrigued and before you know it I had all four of my children on the floor playing.  When it became obvious that our circle was still a little too small Captain E added a lap around the table and the kitchen island.  I wish I could have a recorded the laughter and squeals of delight.  I wish I could forever remember Cheetah booking it around the corner.  Our game maybe only lasted fifteen minutes but as I lay on the ground out of breathe after having to sprint to stay out of the grasp of my ten year old I thought, "Why is it so hard to say yes?"  I know it isn't always possible to be the yes mom.  I have a great friend who I admire with every grain in my heart.  She is a yes mom.  The kind of mom who has every kid in the neighborhood tromping through her house because she is the kind of person that kids and adults alike just want to be around.  She did things like put a swing up in her living room, allow her son to go commando for five years, fed the whole neighborhood.  Her house was often full of crazy, messy floors, loud noises, things being broken.  She had no set schedule and her plans could change on a whim.  Sometimes I found the chaos overwhelming and I know not everyone can live like that (and by everyone I mean me) but I wish that every once in a while my automatic answer wasn't always no.  Dinner still got put away, the table still go cleared, and those extra fifteen minutes made everyone in my house feel a whole lot better.  Sometimes it feels good to say yes.  Sometimes it is for the best.