I’ve been a bit of an emotional mess the past two weeks.
My daughter is starting Kindergarten. She will be gone ALL DAY 5 days a week!
Part of me is beyond excited. I’ll finally get some time to myself!
But the other part of me is a mix of sadness and guilt. She’s not a baby anymore and what if I didn’t spend enough time with her?
I was feeling a lot of “mom guilt”.
I’ve had a lot of struggles with my daughter lately. I haven’t had much sleep which brings my patience to an all-time low. My daughter is very energetic and she’s beyond ready for school to start.
Put those two together and you’ve got a recipe for disaster.
I never wanted to be one of those moms that yells at her kids. And here I am doing the very thing I don’t want to do.
Ugh.
I ended up asking some of my friends to pray for me. I needed help. I needed God to give me the patience I didn’t have.
Amidst all these emotions, I wanted my daughter’s last day of summer to be really special. The best I could think of was to take the kids to a park and then the local bakery for a cookie afterwards.
Not too bad, right?
As our “special” morning went on I found myself struggling just as I had the past couple days. My daughter was being very emotional, throwing fits at the smallest things, not obeying, etc. I started to get down again seeing that our special day wasn’t going very well at all.
I took the kids to the park and bakery as planned and things were going better.
But it still didn’t feel special.
Then God was like “I’ll show you how to make her day special!”
We had just finished our snack at the bakery and we all got in the car, intending to drive home.
Out of nowhere I see a red helicopter flying in the air right above us. While I waited at the stop sign, I pointed it out to the kids and they stared in awe.
Then the helicopter landed in a little grass field nearby. I decided to drive up to where the helicopter landed to give the kids a closer look. I pulled up to the helicopter and we stayed in the car to look at it.
The kids were so excited to see a real helicopter close up!
Then I decided it was time to go. As I drove away, the pilot got out of the helicopter. I rolled down the window and told him “you just made my kids day!”
Then he said “would the kids like to sit in it?”
I agreed and the kids screamed in excitement! My kids not only got to see a real helicopter but they both got to sit inside of it!
So this day that started out not so special ended up being awesome. The whole drive home I couldn’t stop smiling! God really came through to make our day special!
That helicopter was sent by God. Yes some people were using it as transportation, but He used it to lift off the heaviness so I could see three things.
- Those guilty feelings were not from Him (and should be ignored)
- He loves me and my kids enough to do something big to make us happy
- I really am a good mother
What have you been struggling with lately?
This post linked to: Whimsy Wednesday, Create It Thursday, Inspiration Monday, and Hit Me With Your Best Shot.
Loralee says
Thank you for sharing that! My two are (almost) all grown now, but it blessed me to hear another of God’s sweet blessings when someone needed it. I love how God continually does things like that!
May you be blessed!
Carrie says
Thank you Loralee!
kristi@ishouldbemoppingthefloor says
Thank you SO MUCH for sharing this story, Carrie. It really touched my heart! We serve a wonderful and amazing God!
Carrie says
It’s great that God does things on a daily basis just to make me smile! I’m so glad this touched your heart Kristi!
Ashley @ 3 Little Greenwoods says
I have come back to read this post several times because it touched my heart. We have all had days like this when we have to calm our busy minds and intentional look for God. When we do He shows up in big ways!
{{big hugs}} to you and your kindergartener!
~ Ashley
Carrie says
Reading comments like this really makes all the blog work worth it! I can’t tell you how encouraging it is to know that God is using this little old blog of mine to help lift others up. Thank you so much for taking time out of your day to tell me this!
Morgan says
I struggle daily as a mom. It’s so hard to have the patience required daily to meet our children’s needs. Bless you for being real and honest with your struggles. I can so relate! May you have a blessed fall season and I hope your daughter thrives in Kindergarten.
Carrie says
I feel like I’m in a constant state of struggle too! If nothing else I’m glad I can share my experience to help others!
AmieJo says
This is great. Thank you for sharing. I too have the mommy guilt over not having enough patience and being the mom I want to be. My kids are a little younger than your daughter so this is a nice reminder that I need to enjoy them while they are still with me all day. Thank you again!
Carrie says
I think our kids seeing our weaknesses and how we deal with them can be a great opportunity. I fail a lot so they have a lot of chances to see me ask for forgiveness! They do grow up so fast! I’m so glad this was helpful to you!
Amy | Canary Street Crafts says
Love this, Carrie!! I struggle with a lot of the same things you mentioned. I’m not a perfect mom, but I love my kids something fierce and I try hard to be the kind of mom they deserve. Some days I’m better at it than others, but I do believe that when you ask for help, He provides. Even if sometimes it’s in the form of a big red helicopter :). Glad you guys had an amazing last day of summer!
Carrie says
I love how you said it–some days I do well and other days I really struggle. But I’m so thankful for His provision–even if it’s in the form of a helicopter!
Keri says
Love this! So encouraging. I hope kindergarten is going well for her!
Carrie says
Kindergarten is going really well so far! She has a great teacher and her school is wonderful. I’m so glad this was encouraging, Keri!
Leilani says
That is so awesome! Tender mercies from the Lord are everywhere. Thanks for sharing and reminding me to look for them in my own life!
Carrie says
I’m so glad to share this knowing that it’s encouraging my readers!
Theresa says
Perfect post! You asked our struggle… being tired impatient… wondering if I’m spending enough quality time?? Your post nailed it! God is so good and does deliver It was a real encouragement for me today.
God gave you the helicopter… and us all your post
Carrie says
I hear you, Theresa! Honestly if I look at how I spend my time I can easily spend more quality time with the kiddos if I just put the computer away! Thank you so much for taking the time out of your day to tell me how this encouraged you!
Leslie says
i love this! What a sweet ending to the special day’s trip out. I hope she likes school. I also hope you guys have had a great day.
Carrie says
It was a really great surprise! Thankfully she really likes school so we’ve all transitioned well!
Jenna @ A Savory Feast says
Isn’t it awesome when God does stuff like this? Thanks for sharing this story, it really encouraged me today.
Carrie says
It makes my day to hear how this encouraged you! I emailed this story to one of my friends that prayed for me she said she was reading it through tears. She felt so encouraged that God was answering her prayers for me! I love sharing what God has done in my life, big and small, since it really seems to encourage others!
Carrie @ Curly Crafty Mom says
That is so neat! I sometimes plan something special for my kids and I just don’t feel it was special enough. I am not sure why I am so hard on myself. My daughter is 5 and just started Kindergarten this week and I feel she is so much more energetic then my son… she wears me out!I miss her so much and I did shed a few (ok, a lot) of tears today! I will get so much done around the house, but I will miss my baby! I was so glad to pick them up today and of course she ran into my arms and I felt better. Being a mom is so, so hard, but so rewarding! What a special gift from God to send that bright red helicopter on their last day of summer!
Carrie says
It’s so easy as a mom to be too hard on ourselves. I get caught in that lie all.the.time. I was also SO relieved to hug her after her first day–it was like I couldn’t fully relax until I knew she had a good day. Now that I’m 3 days into it I can say it gets a little easier letting go. Too bad we don’t live closer and we could have had coffee and cried about our “baby” girls together!
Jean Kronzer says
awwww, bless your heart……….of course you are a good Mommy!!!!!!!!!
Carrie says
Awww–thank you Jean! I know I make mistakes but I’m thankful for God’s grace that helps me be the mom He wants me to be!