I have to confess something. I waste too much time wishing the hours away.
As a stay-at-home-mom I’m on call 24/7. The “job” never ends. Having two little ones around me means I’m needed for something ALL.THE.TIME. I can’t even go to the bathroom by myself anymore!
(For my friends that don’t have kids–enjoy the bathroom time alone while you can!)
Needless to say I crave having some time alone to relax.
So many of my days are spent struggling through balancing all the things I “need” to do while trying to find some time to relax. The mountain of laundry needs to be put away. The dishes are overtaking the kitchen. My son (Number 2) needs a diaper change. My Daughter (Number 1) needs an attitude adjustment. The bills need to be paid. The house is a mess. And the list goes on.
I’ve gotten into a bad habit of counting down the hours left until the next nap time or until the kids go to bed so I can have a little time to myself. I’m not saying it’s bad to do that but I was doing this all the time. Not good.
Then God gently reminds me that I GET to be home with my kids while they’re young. I won’t be able to get this time back so why am I wishing it away?
Yesterday afternoon after nap time (Number 2 was the only one who napped) I felt that struggle come up. It was one of those days that I could have easily just wished the time away instead of enjoying where my life is.
11 …I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. 12 I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. 13 I can do all things through him who strengthens me.”
Philippians 4:11-13
During the hard days I’m trying to appreciate the place where God has me. Spending lots of time with my two kids IS a blessing and I’m trying to focus on that instead of whatever issue is bugging me. I can ask Jesus for patience when I’m about to lose my cool because it is “him who strengthens me.”
So yesterday I decided to stop doing household chores for a little while and spend some quality time with the kids. I got to practice learning to be content with where I am. I grabbed my camera and took some candid shots of the kids. Then I saw the mood in all of us change.
My daughter, who’s had a camera in her face most of her life, is sometimes really resistant to smiling for the camera. I can’t blame her. I took a couple shots of her and since she hates smiling, some of those shots turned out looking really funny. Next thing you know the two of us are cracking up at the silly faces she made in the pictures. My son is playing on the floor next to us and he laughs just at the sound of his sister’s laugh. Hearing my kids laugh is such a precious sound.
There are going to be some of those days where I have to fight off the pressure to get everything done and just enjoy being where I am. I’m glad I made that choice yesterday. Otherwise I wouldn’t have laughed so much or gotten these great shots of my kids.
The laundry, bills, and cleaning can wait. I’m going to play with my kiddos while I can.
Enjoying the now with your kids is so important. I used to spend a lot of time doing household work and getting annoyed that the children wanted to spend time with me. Then 15 months ago we were in a major car accident and I realized that the house can wait, but in a moment my children or I could be gone forever. Now I schedule small blocks of time, usually during quiet time, to do the cleaning and the house honestly looks better now than when I was spending hours a day cleaning.
Wow–what a life-changing experience! I’m glad you all made it after the accident. I have a very similar struggle–sometimes I try to get housework done at the expense of my kids and that’s not right. I’m trying to focus on having more one on one time with my kids because it’s so important to them. It’s a hard balance but yes the house can always wait! Thanks so much for stopping by, Amy!