It's the simple things

Last Friday, I spent the day with a very dear friend. She and her family just returned from three years out of state while her husband attended law school (which he graduated from - 1st in his class!). Anyway, my friend and her two little girls had never been to the movie theater, so I treated them to "Toy Story 3." We bought popcorn, waters, and M&M's. Good times, right?
YES! Absolutely good times!
Not even 10 minutes into the movie, little 3-year-old Aubrey accidentally tipped her M&M's bag upside down and they spilled every which way on the floor. As I'm trying to keep her from crying and promising to buy more (which her mother was opposed to - whatever, mom!), I knocked over the bucket of popcorn and added to the mess. Oops!
Aubrey and I went out and purchased more M&M's. Never have I seen such a smile on a little girl's face. SO cute! We returned to the theater for a (mostly) uneventful rest of the movie. Toward the end, Aubrey had to go potty (too much sugar and too much water for a 3-year-old's bladder to handle, I guess), so I took her to the restroom.
--Let me just insert here that I've always had a problem taking other people's children to the bathroom. What if they start yelling, "Stranger!" or something and I get hauled in for kidnapping or abuse?! It just freaks me out, but the girl had to go.--
Aubrey's doing great, until she says, "I need help." Uh oh. Now what?! I opened the stall to see her looking up at me with a huge grin and pointing at the toilet paper. Thank heavens Mommy taught her to "take care of business" by herself! Phew! We got over that obstacle, and as we're drying our hands, Aubrey says, "Paper towel." I look down, and on the floor someone has left a paper towel. I said, "Yep. Somebody made a mess, didn't they?" Aubrey says. "Yep ... you pick it up?" Ha, ha, ha! Oh, man. Mommy has got to stop teaching those girls about cleanliness!
Anyway, we went back to the theater and finished the movie. As it was ending, this thought crossed my mind: In the past, I would have been upset over the spilled M&M's, annoyed about the potty break, bothered about having to pick up the paper towel, and resentful that I missed part of the movie. Reality: it's the simple things that really matter. I was actually happier replacing spilled M&M's, taking a 3-year-old for a potty break, picking up a paper towel to make said 3-year-old happy, and having no clue what I missed during the movie than I've been in a VERY long time.
In other words, mothers have the best job in the entire world. And I think those who get to be mothers should feel very blessed that they can serve the "little people" they love so much. There's no amount of money in the world that could make another job quite as satisfying as being a mom. After all, mothers are best at doing the simple things.