Please Excuse This House!

EXCUSE THIS HOUSE
Some houses try to hide the fact

That children shelter there,

Ours boasts it quite openly,

The signs are everywhere.

For smears are on the windows,

Little smudges are on the doors

I should apologize, I guess

For toys strew on the floor.

But I sat down with my child

And we played and laughed and read

And if the doorbell doesn’t shine,

Their eyes will shine instead.

For when at times I’m forced to choose

The one job or the other,

I’d like to cook and clean and scrub,

But first I’ll be a mother.