Take Time to Smell
the Roses!
By jocin3
How many times do I remember my mother telling me "This too will
pass" and thinking that I would never live through this phase of my
child’s life??? More than I can count on my fingers and toes! Let me
tell you a little secret………SHE WAS RIGHT !!! "This too shall pass" is a phrase all moms should keep on the
tip of their tongues when dealing with a frustrating or challenging
child rearing situation.
Each phase of your role as a parent changes as your child grows month
by month and year by year.
As little infants they are totally dependent upon you listening for
their cries, filling their wee tummys full of warm milk, and keeping
them dry and dressed comfortably.
Before you know it you are deep in the midst of
"toddler time" and
your home suddenly can become a dangerous place full of steps,
cabinets to open and explore and toilets to flush endlessly.
Turn your back and you are waving a teary goodbye as your child goes
off to Preschool or Kindergarten for the first time…you remember
those days of sitting next to the phone hoping the school won’t call
with news of illness or worse yet..misbehavior!
Go around the corner and you suddenly have a Middle Schooler full of
new adventure..locker combinations to learn…boy/girl
attractions…"going out" which means "seeing each other but
never leaving the building" LOL! Frustrations with teachers..feeling
like you are not in total control of things at all times.
Go to sleep and wake up and you notice your child is now a
highschooler..deal with major peer pressure..weird hairstyles..odd
ways of wanting to dress…wanting to fit in…tears over
boys/girls…pulling away but wanting to stay close. Being independent
and assertive and "knowing everything". Challenging family rules.
One morning you wake up and wander into your child’s room to see the
bed occupied by a sleeping cat..and you realize that your child is now grown and gone out into the world…in
college and far from home. You worry just the same…..but your mind keeps going back to
that phrase your mom told you all those years ago..as you stood knee
deep in laundry…getting sticky Popsicle kisses from your little
ones…."This too shall pass"
Take time to smell the roses….enjoy the
moments you have with your wee ones. Although some of those days seem
endless and drag on forever….and you wish your child would just
"grow up" …be careful what you wish for..it happens in the blink
of an eye.
