A Renewed Perspective

After I got done posting on the blog I went upstairs to read my Bible and a chapter in this book and it was JUST what I needed to hear. Everyone always says that the years that your kids are young are the best years of your life, and to be quite honest, most days I don't feel like these are the best years. I cannot WAIT to be able to sit down and enjoy a meal or read a book after supper and take a trip without packing the entire house and spending most of it sideways getting things for the kids. Selfishly, I just want to take care of ME. Motherhood is great for me b/c it most certainly is not about me. Anyway, back to being the best years of your life.... the chapter I just read was about how quickly time goes and about not having regrets about the time you spent with your kids. I could say that mostly, aside from the demands of potty training, most of why I've been so crabby today has been b/c I've felt like the kids are getting in the way of my job, cleaning the house, getting it back in order after being gone, making the menu for the month, etc. I realize there has to be balance, but I'm missing the forest for the trees. The kids are only going to be at home with me for a short time, so what if Brent comes home tonight and I don't have everything done and put away. The author of the book, Lysa Terkeurst, talked about seeing a rainbow with her kids and how fast the rainbow disappeared, and she related it to their years with us...

Our children are like that rainbow. They burst on the scene of our lives in such a way that you feel as though they'll be there forever. Their colorful personalities and bright expressions are shining reminders of God's promises and miracles. They dance through their childhood, making lasting impressions on our hearts and then the time comes for them t pull away. The colors of childhood swirl and mix and change and fade into the realities of adulthood. It will happen. There will come a day when the door to childhood will open or the last time, and that night as surely as that child closes her eyes to sleep, he door will close. All the curious questions that drive you crazy today will cease. All the fingerprints and smudges will go away. All the childhood fantasies and dreams will fade. And her mother will wake the next morning to peer into the sky and wonder were the rainbow has gone.

She goes on to talk about letting go of "mommy stress" and focus more on enjoying motherhood and building a strong family, one that knows their children's souls.

I skipped ahead to the next chapter and found another page that encouraged me...

It sounds so dreamlike to dress your little darlings in clothes that match, hear them say that you are the best mom in the world, bake cookies together in the afternoon, and relish their sweet spirits while listening to their bedtime prayers. Yes, those moments are there. But woven all around ideal moments are whiny voices, childish attitudes, sibling fights, strong wills, messy accidents, snotty noses, stained clothes, and strained nerves. It all comes down to choosing what to focus on. Wherever you put your focus, that will become bigger and more magnified.

I want to focus on what matters. I write this for a reminder to myself that the years are fleeting, that time is precious and to remember to stay positive.