I have found myself several times pondering memories.  More specifically, our little Wingman’s memories.

I wonder what moments will be special to him.  What will be impressed on his memory.  What will be the stories he will tell his friends?  What will he fondly recall to his children someday?

I think about the future.  I think about the family trips we want to do.  The trips to the park on weekends.  The memories that we already plan to create.  I think about the memories that we won’t even try to create, but that will be the ones that will mean a lot to him.

Then my thoughts turn to his current memories.   He will most likely remember nothing specific about the next couple years.  But he will remember the love he is shown day to day.  He knows day to day that we love him, take care of him and play with him.  These moments make me smile.  These memories will build and build until he eventually remembers the events that go with them.

Memories begin with moments.  And I treasure these moments we have each day!

-Bonnie

Microsoft Image

Sometimes parenthood really doesn’t go as you expect.

Like when your baby is only a few weeks old and you realize you and your husband have different views on some aspects of parenting, in spite of all the hours of discussion prior to having baby.

Or when you say, “I’ll never stick my kid in front of a TV.  Especially not my baby.”  And then your 5 month old screams every time you put him down but you and your husband have to pack for a trip.

Or when you decide, “I’ll never CIO.” (CIO – a parenting method called Cry It Out.)  And then you are so frustrated you can’t see straight and you are pushing yourself right off the edge and your husband has to intervene otherwise you and/or the baby might get hurt so one night he physically removes the baby from your arms and tucks you into bed.  And you realize that really was what was needed.

Or when you have a goal to breast feed until 9 months or a year.  And then at 8 weeks old, your baby decides that he doesn’t love nursing anymore and you fight and wrestle him for weeks until you have to introduce formula in order to get some nourishment into him  and he continues to cry and squirm and flail and it’s a wrestling match almost every nursing session and you do your best to hang in there and fight to keep nursing until you finally have to realize that it’s over and at 6 months old your baby nurses for the last time.

Or when you say, “I don’t want to put my baby in the church nursery.”  And then you haven’t sat through a full sermon or Bible study in months and you are desperately hungry for the Word and realize that you just might want to try to put your baby in the nursery.

Or what about all those times over the years where you said, “I will not be one of those Moms that talks to their baby in a baby voice.”  Um, yes.  I may or may not do this.

None of those goals were wrong.  In fact, I still stand by them for the most part.  But sometimes….life just doesn’t go as you expected.

The shame sets in.  You are discouraged because you did (or didn’t do) x, y, or z.  You are ashamed when you go into the cry room at church and pull out a bottle of formula as the Mom next to you nurses her much older child.  You hope CIO doesn’t come up in a conversation where you’ll have to admit that you have CIO.  People just don’t understand when you talk about your goals for your child being (or not being) in the nursery.

And here I am preaching to myself as well as my readers.  Don’t be ashamed.  Life is hard.  Parenting is hard.  Motherhood is hard.  Breast feeding is hard.  The exhaustion is hard.

Have goals.  Make goals.  Spend time researching and figuring out what you think is best.  Do all that you can to achieve those goals.  But if something happens and you realize that another decision needs to be made…..or you realize the decision is out of your control….it is okay.  Don’t worry about what the Mom next door will say.  Don’t worry about what your family will say.  Do what is best for your family.  Don’t listen to the voices that will try to tell you that you gave up or you didn’t try hard enough or that you don’t love your child enough.

Don’t give in to the lies!!  God gave your baby to you.  God gave your circumstances to you.  Seek Him as you make and evaluate your goals.  He is the only One you need to please!

-Bonnie