The Motherhood Years and Letting Go of Them

The Motherhood Years

Today I was cleaning out some drawers and I found something that stopped me in my tracks. I had to sit down, hold it, and think about the motherhood years.

Years ago my husband surprised me with this shirt as a Mother’s Day gift. Our 5 kids were still young and I wore it with such pride. There’s a hole up above Justin’s head that I think was made when someone accidentally spilled bleach on it. I can’t describe all the memories that came rushing back to me as I held the shirt and cried.

When I was a teen I never thought I would like motherhood. I thought it limited what women could do. I couldn’t have been more wrong. I didn’t like motherhood….I LOVED it. Instead of limiting what I could do it inspired me to do more! To be a better person. To love my students as I loved my own children. To work harder at my faith and pray more often!

Motherhood taught me a lifetime of lessons

1. Every child is different, even identical twins. Don’t expect them to think alike, act alike or achieve at the same pace.
2. Love their weaknesses as much as you love their strengths. Everyone struggles with something. Problems and how we react to them are how we learn and grow.
3. Everyone tells you to savor the moment but it’s so dang hard to do when you are running from work, to ballgames, to ballet and then trying to keep up with laundry and clean house. I know that clutter and mess bother a lot of people but don’t let it consume you. Trust me, when the kids are grown and gone you won’t remember how much fun it was to clean house but you will remember how awesome it was to watch your son hit a home run or your daughter perform at a dance recital.
4. There are some things you can let slide but trust me on this one, don’t ignore their spiritual training. Learning to trust God and have faith are at the top of the motherhood list of importance. Take them to church. Pray with them. Pray about them. It’s the most important thing a parent can do.
5. Control your tongue. My parents fought in front of me, looking back I understand why. My mother was so young and there was a ten year age difference between her and my father but I still have vivid memories of some of the the things they said to each other. A disagreement with your spouse should be in private, not in front of the kids.

I could go on and on and on, but I’m not the momma now. I’m the nana and that comes with different lessons and responsibilities.

For right now I’ll just close by telling you that I folded the shirt and put it back in the drawer. There are some memories you just can’t give away and many of them are about the motherhood years.