Being a mommy, either of young ones or big ones, your motherhood takes a beating. I seem to take the brunt of Lego fights, complaining about getting the bigger broccoli and the sassy lip service. My mothering attitude starts to go swirling in the toilet and then I start acting like the 4 yr old, complaining about the complaining and my lip service is less then stellar. My Motherhood needs Mothering. Why do I let the 6 yr old get the best of me...I am the adult..right??? I should respond in soft , yet firm tones, and quote Scripture in order to correct the behavior. Umm...sure...sometimes...
I need to apply some nurturing to my motherhood. It needs to be treated like a child who is needing some correction. Before you should start your day of motherhood, give it some good mothering so it can hold up under the most difficult of days.
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Smother your motherhood in Scripture and Prayer daily- Who else is going to understand your motherhood more than our Heavenly Father. He is in our shoes on daily basis when dealing with us :) He knows all too well when His children forget the rules, disobey and treat other unkindly.
-Be Careful what you say--because when you say it, it may not seem so bad. But when your child repeats exactly what you say, it comes back 10x more sassy and disrespectful. I am sometimes taken aback at how I sound through the lips of my child. Mother your words, watch them and talk like you want to be talked to back.
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Choose to be Happy--If I see my child moping around and grumpy, more than likely, I have been grumpy. I need to Mother my attitude and put a smile on my face. Turning on worship music or contemporary Christian music really lifts the frowns upside down in this house. I need to be proactive about creating an atmosphere of Joy and Thanksgiving in my home.
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Get enough sleep and eat well--This is a daily mothering we give our kids, so we need to mother ourselves too. You need to be rested and get the sleep you need to be the mom you need to be. If you are living on coffee and donuts for 3/4 of the day, then that will tilt your motherhood in the negative direction. We need to set the example.
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Relax. Play. Say "yes" sometimes. --I sometimes see my girls get stressed and ready to blow up at their sister over the smallest of errors. I say, "Relax, it's OK." But, I actually need to follow my own advice. We need to relax and say it's going to be OK. Yes, we have a To-Do list a mile long, the flowers need planting, and I need to go to the grocery store. Breathe. Sit down, read a story with your kids. Then have them help with your to-do list, they love to plant flowers with you too, and maybe let daddy do the grocery shopping :) Enjoy being a mother. Say "yes" when they want to run thru the sprinklers.
You want to see them giggle...run thru the sprinkler with them.
Your kids want to see you enjoying your motherhood. So take the time to Mother your motherhood, because it will effect generations of mothers after you.