Mother’s Day
With Mother’s Day on Sunday, I just wanted to take a moment to encourage my fellow mamas. Being a mama is tough! Nobody tells you how hard it’s going to be before you start. Somewhere in the midst of the endless loads of laundry, dirty dishes, potty-training, fighting, and chaos, we lose sight of what really matters. Sometimes, we just need somebody to come alongside and say, “Don’t give up, Mama. You’re doing a great job!” That’s what this post is for.
Happy Kids Towell
I saw this hand towel in a store the other day and had to snap a picture.
I love this quote so much because it’s so true! We think that we’re a good mama based on how well our children behave when we’re in public, how clean our home is, how polite our child is, and a myriad of other things. When in reality, we should really base it on whether or not our kids are happy.
We strive so hard to do everything that makes us a “good mama;” but in the end, our kids don’t really need all that. They are happy when we simply choose to just spend time with them and love them. Below is an excerpt from my book Finding Free: 5 Simple Steps to a More Peaceful, Content, and Happy You that releases in a few weeks.
Dear Young Mama
As a young mom. I was so frustrated and weary all the time. I wanted my house to look like the other homes I saw. The problem was, those homes didn’t have four little children living there creating havoc every single day.
If I could give advice to the younger version of me, I would tell her to relax. The time is coming when I will have a perfect house. The furniture won’t have stains on it, the mirror won’t have handprints on it, there won’t be spilled juice on the floor making it sticky, there won’t be toys everywhere. There’s coming a time when I won’t have to pick up my house twenty-four seven. In the blink of an eye, I know this time will have passed.
Our oldest is already pushing eleven years old. We have seven more years with him. After that, I don’t know what God has for him. Too soon, our home will be empty. Without a shadow of a doubt, I know that I will wish for toys on the floor and fingerprints on the mirror.
Looking Back
I will look back at the craziness and the chaos and miss it and wish that our house was loud and messy once more. Even now, I miss the baby stage. I love the stage of life that each of my kids are at, but I do miss having a baby in the house.
I don’t miss late-night nursing sessions, carrying a heavy diaper bag everywhere I go, and cleaning up diaper explosions. But I miss the snuggles of a baby. If I could go back and do it all over again, I would choose to spend less time trying endlessly to get the house clean. I would choose more time rocking my baby, snuggling with my toddlers, and playing hide and seek with my preschoolers.
The thing is, that exhaustion that plagues you every moment of the day with littles will pass. You will get past this stage. Life will get easier. Those babies will grow up. They will be able to help as they get older.
For now, soak in those baby cuddles. Embrace the time with your littles. Spend time doing the things you can do now that you can’t do once they go to school. You have five years with your first child before they go to school. Once they go to school, things really change. It’s really hard to let them go. That’s one of the reasons we love homeschooling so much. We don’t have to let them go. I get to take an active role in their education. I don’t have to send them away every day, and I love that.
The Days are Long, but the Years are Short
The best phrase I have heard when dealing with littles is this: “The days are long, but the years are short.” It’s so true. The days were and still are at times so very long. Yet in the blink of an eye, the years have passed. I can’t believe our oldest is almost a teenager. It seems like just yesterday we brought him home from the hospital. The years have just flown by.
All too soon, he is going to be leaving us. God has great things in store for each of our kids, and I am excited to see what they are. But I know it’s going to be so hard to let them go. So, I am going to spend the time now, while they are still in my care enjoying every minute of it. I’m saying this as a reminder and challenge as much to myself as I am saying it to you.
Don’t give up, Mama. Though the days are long, keep at it. Keep loving your kids, keep training them, keep forgiving them and teaching them how to love Jesus and the people around them. We only have this short amount of time with them; make it count!
For More Encouragement
For more encouragement on this topic, check out one of my favorite mom books—The SuperMom Myth: Conquering the Dirty Villains of Motherhood by Becky Kopitzke and my post, Guaranteed Success for Moms.
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