Treasured

I've read, often, a part of the Bible that puts me to shame. It's not Proverbs 31, full of descriptors of a prosperous wife, although I am far from being the woman described there. It's not Exodus 20, convicting me of not putting God first in my life. It's Luke 2:19. "But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart."
I am a task-oriented gal. I love planning, making a list and checking things off. I still have the master list of all that went in to the week before my wedding--it's one of my favorite lists (yes, I am that nerdy!).
But often, I let the tasks get in the way of the relationships in my life, especially some of the most important ones: my relationship with my kids. I want a clean, organized house stocked with healthy groceries which are all prepared and ready to put into meals for the week. These are not bad things until I let them be more important than why I am cleaning, planning, cooking.
Today I got to take my only daughter with me to the grocery store...alone. With five kids, one only two months old, this was a treat. But, there we were, driving across town to do a double store trip (Walmart and Aldi), and I was already planning all the other activities that needed to be accomplished for the day. I'm sure I missed some wonderful singing and a fantastic discussion.
Fortunately, God whacked me over the head, as he often does. As we were driving from Walmart to Aldi, I was talking to Ruthie about stranger danger. I wanted her to be aware but not afraid, but when we arrived at Aldi, she asked me to hold her hand. And so, there I was, trying to push a cart through the store with my five-year-old attached to me.  What a blessing God let me see! I was connected with her, and making a memory and not worried about all the other things that needed to be done.
I'd like to say I spent the rest of the day more focused on my family than on the chores, but I didn't. Several times today I stressed over not getting to the tasks I really wanted to check off my list. But God called me back to see my kids, the time I was spending with them. And now I have time to sit and ponder over these treasures and lock these memories away in my heart.