Help Mommy Stop It Crying

Regret by Alfred Stevens

Today I had a homeschool mama meltdown. Oh it was a slobbery mess. It was one of those hide in the bathroom and cry into some toilet paper moments. What? You don't have those?!

Every parent of multiple children has that one kid that has to push the buttons. Some of you have an only child that likes to push your buttons. That one child that always knows just which trigger to click to send you careening over the edge of sanity. The kid that can simply look at you the wrong day when you haven't had your third cup of of coffee yet and it simply just ticks. you. off. For no reason. The child that says things that are rude. That acts inconsiderate. Stubborn. Willful. Ungrateful. This child will be bold in his discontent and make everyone know about it. Or perhaps he will cause discontent simply because he can. He will monitor the ebb and flow of your day and when the toddler has tried to clean the toilet (true story), the cat has escaped out the screen door (again), and you have burnt the second batch of cookies for the church potluck he will strike. Like a coiled garden snake. Just a nip. An off side comment about the lunch you prepared. Or a personal correction on how you could have done it better. This child never says I am sorry. He is the one that hurts you to the core and who you pray most earnestly for. He is the one you worry about.

Now for non-homeschool world this child is difficult. He is the one the school calls home about. The one who got sucked into a game of 'pick on the fat kid' or a child that wrote naughty notes because someone told him to. This child talks back to teachers and stares out windows instead at the board. He is a challenge. He gets several different teachers who will tiptoe around his ego and hold his hand through every problem. They will attempt to build his low self esteem because that must be why he acts out. As a parent at home, you can survive the time the tyrant is home and then breathe when he is shipped off to school to be in some else's hair for a bit.

The homeschool mom has no such luxury. She will be a target for his misguided actions. He will ignore her careful plans and strive to be busy being anything but productive at his work. He will need almost constant supervision. When you are cleaning up the toddler, writing out math problems for your first grader and cutting up a chicken for supper he will wander from his studies to get the really good color crayons buried somewhere in his room or take a 35 minute bathroom break. He will become engrossed in watching a spider crawl across his bedroom ceiling and forget about his copywork. When you homeschool it is difficult to balance this child that takes three times longer to do everything. When you want to be starting Bible Study he is looking for his Bible becasue he has misplaced it... again. He makes everyone wait. He is often spouting authority he doesn't have. He fails to take responsibility for his actions unless they are golden. Then he doesn't let anyone forget it. It is exhausting.

Now on the flip side this is that kid with the million dollar smile. He gives it out like a gift. Eyes lit up mischievously. You can't help but love him in his naughtiness. You know there is an amazing potential in this child. One that if directed and guided can be a powerful tool for the LORD. His boldness is celebrated by God. His fearlessness is suited for sharing the gospel in unkind places. His ability to read you can be used for discernment in places of unrest and upheaval. His whimsy will allow him to get lost in God without guilt of all the have-tos and must-dos all of the law abiding, responsible folks miss out on. 

But oh how painful it is to survive the here and now. How frustrating to feel that you may never see the day this child curbs his sin and instead uses his gifts for God's glory! It can bring a mother to tears. Sobbing tears. In the bathroom. With the Princess Petunia on her potty.

The Preacher Man peeks in and says : Honey, You are doing an amazing job.

I feel like I'm failing. ~snot running.


No, you're not failing.

He wraps me in his arms. 

If he ends up in jail, will it be my fault?

No, it will be his choice. We will love him just like we love all our children in their messes. And we will visit him. ~ He chuckles.

LORD God, Bless mommy and help her stop it crying. Amen. 

Out of Princess Petunia. I am blessed. I am doing something right.

In my concentrated prayer time this verse was jumping out at me. I had read it earlier in a distracted sort of way... 

⁷ And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. ~Philippians 4:7

In fact let's take the whole chunk... How do we get the peace?

⁶ Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. ⁷ And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. ~Philippians 4:4-7

Well, aren't I making my requests known to God? Doesn't He know how painful this parent -child relationship can be? Well, of course HE does! Are we not often just like this spoiled, naughty child?

Which is why we are commanded to let our requests {petitions} be made known BY our prayers and supplication. The World English Dictionary defines Supplication as a humble entreaty or petition. Catch that? Humble. Humble Prayer. And we are to do that humble prayer WITH Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving is the act of giving thanks; grateful acknowledgment of benefits or favors, especially to God. 

I am often demanding that He fix this child. Or fix me. Or fix us. But I am not being humble in my request. I am expecting that I know better than my LORD. Oh how wrong! And I am forgetting to be thankful. I have much to be thankful for, even with this child that vexes me so very much. 

The Lord goes on to tell me He will give me peace beyond all understanding if I will follow this simple equation. The LORD will guard my heart and my understanding if I am humble before Him and go to Him with thanksgiving.

In conclusion, He gives me the way to calm down those feelings of inadequacy. Of frustration. Of I feel like I am failing again thoughts. He gives meditation tools! 

⁸ Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. ~Philippians 4:8

If my attitude is defeatist I should dwell on things commendable.
If I am at the end of the proverbial rope I should think about the Strength the LORD gives me.
If I have had a day of constant disruption and agonized over language arts just one last time I can take a few moments and  meditate on how blessed we are to pray through those lessons.

And the Peace will be with me.

Always Blessed,
Gretchen :)

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Raising Arrows 

Modest Mom Blog 

Deep Roots At Home

The Better Mom Monday Link Up

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Domestic Randomness~ Friday Fascinations

Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving!

 What we remember.

The First Thanksgiving  Jennie A. Brownscombe

 

 

 

 

 

 

 What it probably looked a bit more like.

Thanksgiving  Hongnian Zhang

 What our family Thanksgiving feels like.

Freedom From Want  Norman Rockwell

What it actually looks like, only bigger.

Thanksgiving  Dinner Colette

 My favorite part.

Thanksgiving  Doris Lee

 What I am most Thankful for.

Jesus Painting  Akiane Kramarik

Have a Blessed Day. Give Thanks!

And he commanded the multitudes to sit down on the grass; and he took the five loaves, and the two fishes, and looking up to heaven, he blessed, and brake and gave the loaves to the disciples, and the disciples to the multitudes.

Matthew 14:19

 

Always Blessed,

Gretchen :)

31 Thankful Fors

Make thankfulness your sacrifice to God,
    and keep the vows you made to the Most High.

Psalm 50:14

<sup>Looks like we are commanded to be thankful and keep our promises made to our LORD. 

Here are my 31 thankful fors....</sup>

• I am thankful for my children.

• I am thankful they are healthy, vibrant, clever children that cause all kinds of disturbances and messes in my type A world^.

• ^{I am so thankful I get to homeschool some of my children.} 

• I am grateful the LORD has grown my relationships with my children since I began homeschooling and even through the hard days we are glad we can educate at home. 

• ^{Thank you LORD Jesus for providing me the courage to say yes and the materials needed for homeschooling.}   

• ^{Thank you LORD for our home. It is too small, the paint is peeling, the windows leak, the basement floods, and the garage is listing a bit to the west but, It is ours. We have made memories here and we have made a life here. It is warm and protects us and although I don't say it often enough, I am thankful for this messy house.}

• ^{I am thankful for our vehicles. Both are actually drivable and that makes my life so much more pleasant,}

• ^{I am so grateful for my husband's job. He works so hard for us and we are blessed because he can support our family and allow me to be home.}

• ^{I am thankful for our luxuries, like internet access and cable tv. They are not necessary but they are so very nice to have.}

• ^{I am thankful for my church family because they are living and breathing God's command to love one another. They are family in all sense of the word.}

• ^{I'm blessed to be given such wonderful friends in which to pray   with and fellowship alongside.  Thank you.}

• ^{Thank you for Your Word LORD. It is my manual for life. I am still amazed at the way You speak to me through it.}

• ^{Thank you for chocolate, coffee, and ice cream.}

• ^{Thank you LORD for providing me the motivation, funding, and knowledge to move our family to a more whole foods diet.}

• ^{Thank you for intrducing me to modesty, LORD. My heart is changing and it is because I finally see I am worthy of respect and love.}

• ^{Thanks for letting the skirt wearing thing be almost painless. :)}

• ^{Thanks for opening doors that should be opened and closing doors we should not be entering into.}

• ^{I'm grateful that you spoke of law tempered with love.}

• ^{I'm blessed to having good health. Thank you LORD.}

• ^{Thanks for the joint pain, it will keep me humble and asking for help.  It will allow me to enjoy every moment that is painfree  with true thankfulness.}

• ^{Thank you for the change of seasons! What a wonderful Creator that He sought to give us beauty so different and yet so divine in each of our changing seasons.} 

• ^{Lord God, Thank you for the Great Outdoors. Thank you for the creatures that crawl, walk, run, slither, swim, gallop, trot, and fly.}

• ^{Thank you for camping.}

• ^{Thank you for my parents and the faith they instilled in me.} 

• ^{Thank you for never letting us 'feel poor' growing up. Help me to teach that to my own children.}

• ^{Thanks for books. For reading. For all forms of the written word which can be used for the enriching of the soul.}

• ^{Thank you for snow days!}

• ^{I'm thankful for my sister and brothers. They are my closest friends.}

• ^{Thank you Lord God for my wonderful husband.}

• ^{I'm blessed that you put us on the same path together and that we can share the burdens and joys found on this journey called marriage.}

• ^{Thank you Lord, For bringing The Hubs and I closer together even though we are for a time living far, far apart.} 

 

 So they removed the stone. Jesus looked up and said, “Father, thank you for hearing me^."

John 11:41

         

^{Thank you Lord for hearing me.}

^{Always Blessed,}

^{Gretchen :)}