The Ragamuffin Stuff

"My kids always ate their vegetables, minded their manners, and won the spelling bee each year.
That was, of course, before I had kids.
In my mind, I baked cookies, but what nobody told me was, I really hate baking: then, now, and forever, amen. In my mind, I like the idea of baking and wearing an apron, though. The truth is I don’t own a checkered apron that ties in the back and has a pocket full of pinecones.

They will grow up and come back home for Thanksgiving with their children. And I will tell them that my expectations belonged to me, that they were my burdens to carry, not theirs. My job was to give them wings, not weights. My job was to inspire them to do what they were created to do, not create them in my own image.

It’s why we play baseball but not the piano. It’s why I know how to score an infield fly when I never cared before. It’s why my children are shy and I am not. It’s why all of that and more has to be OK."
(emphasis mine)
Read more at http://humblemusings.com/?paged=2

The Lord is, in His grace and mercy, teaching me how to parent. Because, let's face it, I hadn't a clue. Being around children, does not make a good parent. Once being a child yourself, as we all were, does not make a parent. And, of course, birthing a child does not automatically make you a good parent. Good, successful parenting comes from God...through wisdom in His Word which ignites all of the knowledge and talent and energy needed that is already inside of us-given to us by Him when He blessed us with children. The difficult part: weeding through all of the junk that the world has taught us about parenting. It's been a challenge for me to stop comparing my children to other people's children and myself to other mothers. Instead, I spend time(LOTS of time) with my children so that I learn who they are and I spend time (LOTS of time) in prayer and study of the Word as I humble myself in front of the Lord and depend and trust in Him fully for my needs as a mother(and wife, woman, friend, etc.).