Things I have learned since becoming a MOM !!

• Children mean sacrifice : money, sleep, free time, daddy time, cleaning house time, friend time, did I mention money? Actually, I have come to realize that it is not really a sacrifice. There is tons of payoff. Like when you are driving down the road and your child says, "Momma, I love you" for no apparent reason. Or, when they say "Momma, you're beautiful." Or when they just open up their arms and give you the biggest heartfelt hug and kiss that they can possibly give. There is no sacrifice too big for those moments.


• Children are like sponges. Their little brain never stops learning and growing. It amazes me the things that my kids know at ages 6 and 3. Sometimes I think that they are smarter than me. And, they always remember EVERYTHING, especially the things that you would rather they forget. And they are no doubt smarter when it comes to technology. They can use the computer, take pictures on a camera cell phone, play video games, and work the tv/dvd player much better than I can.


• Children fill your house with love, joy, happiness, and toys!!! You loose all the desire that you ever had to clean them up, too. Who cares they will just be out again in 5 minutes. And, it is amazing how they multiply when they are out of the toybox. You can never fit it all back in there again. And keeping the car clean... Ha! There is no way.


• Children can sometimes get out of your sight. Code ADAM is the signal called from the loud speaker when a child has come missing in a store. Not only do they call attention to the fact that there is a missing child, but people get really angry when the doors lock and they can not leave or enter the store until the child is found. And when that child is clever enough to climb up on a shelf and hide behind garbage cans, it takes a while to find him.


• Children can empty a brand new shampoo bottle in 2.5 seconds. And, it is very difficult to get all of the bubbles out of a tub or shower that is filled with soap. It is even harder to get baby powder out of a living room when a child has emptied an entire container into the air, while her brother dances through it floating in the air. You may think that you have it swept/vacuumed up... but wait about 10 minutes when it settles again!!! It is next to impossible.


• Children teach you to worry less : If it doesn't kill them, it will make them stronger. They can fall from the second story of a barn and land on top of a tiller and survive. They can stick popcorn kernels in their nose so far that you find them several days later when they sneeze. They can somehow roll to the edge of your bed when they are only 2 weeks old and fall into a box full of picture frames with sharp corners and come out without a scratch. They will survive after drinking toilet water, eating a whole roll of rolaids, an electrasol tablet, and several fiber pills. (They have not tried all in one sitting, but it would not surprise me)


• Children think that any mess they make can be cleaned up. However, Oxi-Clean and goo-gone have their limits: red fingernail polish in white carpet, green crayon melted on clothes and all over the dryer, and permanent marker all over the dresser and pillow case.


• Children who start out sleeping with their parents will EVENTUALLY decide that it is time to grow up and sleep alone (or they just move to sleeping with their little sisters).


• Children often create expenses that you are not expecting (and often parents do not even decide it is necessary to spend the money to get them fixed). Truck hoods are not built to be landing stips for a "windshield slide". Recliners that are positioned too close to a 2 week old window will shatter them when they are rocked to wildly. And, cars will roll backwards (coming extremely close to fences) when put into neutral.
• Children have their own fashion/hygene sense. Boys do not care if they match, if they have holes in their clothes (in fact, that makes them neat), if they have worn the clothes for days at a time, or if they even fit. Boys also do not care if they ever take a bath. Their famous saying is "But mom, I took a bath yesterday!" Girls on the other hand, ask when they can shower; get out and put on clean panties and pajamas; wake up and want to change panties when they change clothes; want their clothes to match, fit, and be clean; come in from school and change clothes, panties, and shoes before going outside to play; come in and change all of this again for supper; then start all over again with the shower.
• Children need our time and love. Spend every moment that you can with them. If they ask you to watch, nothing else should stop you. If they want you to listen, turn everything else off. If they want you to play, drop whatever you are doing. If they ask you to read, find a book. If they ask for a hug, open up. If they ask a question, have an answer. If they fall down, pick them up. If they cry, wipe a tear. If they fail, encourage them. If they succeed, praise them. Just LOVE them.
• Children do not come with owners manuals. They would all have to be different if they did. Each child in unique and each situation is unique. As a parent, the only guide book that you have is God's Word, the Bible. Hold on to it, follow it, and let them see Jesus in your every moment. There is no greater responsibility in parenting.