Today was one of THOSE days - so bad that it is almost comical - you just have to laugh. At every turn something was going terribly wrong. The BEST part about the whole thing (note the sarcasm) was that my day started on a mothering high. Beside the blogs I read of people that I know I also read a few blogs that inspire me. These include blogs about "real food", a few preschool/homeschooling/early childhood education blogs, and a few mothering blogs. One of my favorites is from a wonderful Christan woman. Before my children were up I read her
post - it was wonderful:
“Motherhood is not something to do if you can squeeze the time in; it is what God gave you time for.”
"How often as mothers are we tempted to say, “I don’t have time for this!” We have just put the baby down for a nap and our older ones are playing quietly together…. so we think. Before you know it a fight between the two occur. Is your first thought or reaction to say those very words? Or do you see that moment as a divine appointment from the Lord, one that can be used to train your children toward Godliness? You see, changing diapers, nursing babies, cleaning up spills and ending sibling disputes is kingdom work. Do we see it as such? Or are we just trying to make it through until naptime and then bedtime? Reaching the heart’s of our children is messy, time consuming and inconvenient. Kingdom work is not easy. It requires us to put aside our own desires and wants and put the needs of others above our own.... Instead of being frustrated when we are having to clean up a spill just one more time, we can show our children that we find joy in serving them. By not reacting in frustration, we also are showing them a fruit of the spirit, patience. At that moment, we have just modeled Christ like behavior, and in return we have given our children a glimpse into their savior’s heart. "
I believe this and I have felt this - but I have not been able to put it into words. I strive to do this everyday. I was so inspired I wanted to put it on my blog, I started writing the post when my kids woke up, so I hit save and started my day.
I won't outline everything that happened that day but lets just say by 12:00 pm I had cleaned up A LOT of messes and each of my younger three children had taken several baths, I had done at least 3 loads of laundry, and used all my Clorox disinfecting wipes and disposable gloves. I never got a shower and never got to eat my breakfast (I remembered I never did when I opened the microwave to make lunch and found my oatmeal).
I found my above quote to be almost adding to the comedic nature of the morning. With each new spill or accident I almost snapped, but my previous post kept coming to mind. Everything was just going so wrong I couldn't quite decide if the post was a tender mercy preparing me for the day - or a joke God was playing on me to get me to laugh at my own life. Probably a little of both.
I am defiantly going to add this quote (the one above) to my "get me through the hard times" affirmations. I wanted to share some of my others with you. They are all actually from Julie B Beck (Former General Relief Society president), they come from three talks, "
A Mother's Heart", "
Mother's Who Know, and "
And Upon the Handmaids I Will Pour Out my Spirit". They all help me to just step up my game a little higher - or just let me know I am not alone.
Mothers who know are nurturers. ... To nurture means to cultivate, care for, and make grow. Therefore, mothers who know create a climate for spiritual and temporal growth in their homes. Another word for nurturing is homemaking. Homemaking includes cooking, washing clothes and dishes, and keeping an orderly home. Home is where women have the most power and influence; therefore, Latter-day Saint women should be the best homemakers in the world. Working beside children in homemaking tasks creates opportunities to teach and model qualities children should emulate. Nurturing mothers are knowledgeable, but all the education women attain will avail them nothing if they do not have the skill to make a home that creates a climate for spiritual growth. Growth happens best in a “house of order,” and women should pattern their homes after the Lord’s house. Nurturing requires organization, patience, love, and work.
Mothers who know do not abandon their plan by succumbing to social pressure and worldly models of parenting. These wise mothers who know are selective about their own activities and involvement to conserve their limited strength in order to maximize their influence where it matters most.
Mothers who know do less. They permit less of what will not bear good fruit eternally. They allow less media in their homes, less distraction, less activity that draws their children away from their home. Mothers who know are willing to live on less and consume less of the world’s goods in order to spend more time with their children—more time eating together, more time working together, more time reading together, more time talking, laughing, singing, and exemplifying. These mothers choose carefully and do not try to choose it all.
To nurture and feed them (children) physically is as much an honor as to nurture and feed
them spiritually. She is “not weary in well-doing” and delights to serve her
family, because she knows that “out of small things proceedeth that which is
great”
Mothers can feel help from the Spirit even when tired, noisy children are clamoring for attention, but they can be distanced from the Spirit if they lose their temper with children.
A good woman must constantly resist alluring and deceptive messages from many sources telling her that she is entitled to more time away from her responsibilities and that she deserves a life of greater ease and independence.”
To some I know these quotes can feel overwhelming and unattainable - but for me they are inspiring and help me try to be a better mom than I currently am.
Especially on days like today.
