Here’s the scene…
One of your kids just started crying, another child somehow has conveniently “forgotten” where their shoes are and expects you to magically make them appear (the left shoe is under the couch, and the right shoe is at Grandma’s), the dog really did eat the homework, your husband woke up on the wrong side of the bed, and you didn’t get the right little kid spoon out of the drawer and now must pay the price of enduring this precious little one’s fourth…or fifth…tantrum of the morning.
It’s 7am and your house is already in full swing.
Let’s just stop for a moment.
Stop? Um…there’s a lot going on and stopping is not really an option. It’s all going to fall apart if anyone else “stops.”
Trust me. Stop for just a second.
Momma, you’re doing a great job!
Great?! Didn’t you just see the mess one kid made while the other “accidentally” bought a whole season of Dora the Explorer off Amazon (how DO they always figure out how to navigate the parental controls?) while I was “stopping?”
Yes, I did. Annnnnnnnd the toilet paper roll that just got unrolled…again.
But keep stopping.
Take a deep breath.
Go ahead, do it.
Momma, you’re doing a great job!
Sure, things are chaotic and that takes its toll on you.
But you keep at it.
Day after day you keep loving on those adorable little toots. You’re there for the tears as well as for the laughter.
Day after day you’re there for the tears as well as for the laughter. #imperfectmom Share on XWhen they get pushed on the playground, you’re the force those other toddlers must deal with. When they are passed over for the team, you are there to pick up the pieces. When they are lied to, you are there with the truth. You know their favorite song, their favorite food, their favorite shirt…and you do whatever you can to make them happy while keeping them safe, providing for their every need, constantly encouraging them AND you still manage to make it to soccer/band/music on time. You make a thousand decisions (usually before breakfast) that are all about their well-being. You love and love and love…with everything you’ve got.
Momma, you’re doing a great job!
And what’s more, when you carry and love your children with everything in your heart, it spurs their daddy on and challenges him to rise up and take the lead.
When you carry and love your children with everything in your heart, #imperfectmom Share on XEven if you don’t see it, that’s what is happening.
“…and if I have all faith to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing…love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude…love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things…” 1 Corinthians 13:2b, 4-5a, 6 (ESV)
Momma, that sounds a lot like what you are doing day after day after day.
So, go ahead and take another deep breath.
Okay, now that you’ve been reminded that you really are making a difference, go ahead and clean that marker off the wall and cut the crust off those PB&Js…because with each small act of love, you are changing the world..one day at a time…and not any faster.
You’re doing a great job!
-From a dad who knows
James Wise is a husband to Cat and father to EZ, Ellie & Norah. James shares insights into fatherhood based on his personal experiences of being a father of three, growing up in a blended family, his years counseling and mentoring young men and general observation of fathers he encounters. James loves music, running, coffee, wrestling with his kids, and is known to make multiple U-Turns in a single trip to the grocery store.
This is a message we need to be reminded of regularly. It was such a struggle when they were all little and more on the way. Now that we have grown children, I see it. I wouldn’t change one sleepless night. The sacrifices are so very, very worth it!