Some days I feel like there is a civil war taking place in my car, in the play room, at the kitchen table, in the sandbox, in the garden, on the playground, and wherever my children happen to be at the same time. We have entered a terrible stage in my children's relationship, and although the sun does come out behind the clouds from time to time, this Mama sometimes despairs both children living to adulthood. OK, it's not quite that bad, but...
How do I respond? Ahem. Well, that's just part of the problem I think. Alternate responses sadly coming from me:
1. Ignoring them
2. Yelling at them
3. Spanking them
4. Yelling at them
5. Scolding them
6. Separating them
7. Yelling at them
8. Sending them outside
9. Threatening them
10. Putting a video on for them to watch
It's like the first few hours go well with very sanctified and holy responses coming from me, but as the day wears on with suspiciously repetitive fights my responses get more and more carnal.
It's like they ENJOY fighting! How is that even possible!?
It's like they can't even be creative when they fight - if I never ever heard the "yes, no", or better said, the YES!!!/ NO!!!" exchange ever again it would be to soon.
It's like God took the most stubborn, willful parts of me and Christian and double-dosed it in our children.
And the end of every day finds me confessing my sinful responses to my children's sin.
Perhaps this post is a bit gloomy - the children do love each other wildly, and want to be together always. And they do often play together happily, but in all honesty, there is way too much fighting going on between the small members of our once peaceful home.
Any words of wisdom for me?
5 comments:
Ich wünsche dir viel Kraft,Geduld und Weisheit für diese Phase!
Nope. (on the words of wisdom) My nine year old when to camp last week and his sister missed him terribly--even put one of his stuffed animals in his seat at the table. But now he's back and they're fighting as much as ever. I am trying to teach them biblical principles, though, such as using edifying words. I know I should be praying more too.
Yea--my kids got the double-dose of their parents' worst traits, too! Ha ha (JK= "Just Kidding, not James Kelly!) Although "sweet little James " did get the fallout once--2 front teeth accidentally removed from his 4 yr. old mouth by the knee of big brother (+ stitches and plastic surgery later)after the big brother flew over the back of his big sister, who happened to bend over right when he was going to jump on her back! Tis true that young people never truly appreciate their parents' struggles and frailty until they are in the midst of parenting themselves. Wish I could say these challenges are temporary--the nature of the challenges do change, but from start to finish, only God's grace/mercy in their lives is sufficient. Trust and obey--even the obeying requires God's enabling. How we need HIM!
...but just look at those faces! God made them so cute to temper our fleshly wrath!
yes rebecca. find comfort in the thought of how sweet i was as a child. i often do.
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