April 12, 2013
-
{a parenting lesson from a mud puddle}
seems the one thing i’m constantly being reminded of in parenting is to choose your battles wisely.
even when it comes to your two year old and her wardrobe choices! Lord, prepare me now for her teen years!!
she’s the youngest of the three girls but the one with the strongest opinion on what she wants to wear.on this particular day for a trip to the park and walk in the woods she was adamant about her pink tulle skirt.
it’s a favorite of mine and i was afraid she would ruin it…
but since the battle i knew would take place wasn’t worth it to me, the frilly skirt it was.we were actually almost done with our time out when it happened.
she was running fast ahead of me and i saw the puddle coming.
i called out to her to stop, which she did..
but she was already at the edge and when her feet stopped the slippery mud sent them flying out from under her..
and there she went. sliding all the way through it!
i hurried towards her. a little mess of tears in the middle of the mud and scooped her up..
mud now all over the front of me too.for a ways after she stayed by my side. hand clenched tight in mine.
eventually the mud dried. alot fell off. she let go and ran ahead again.and as i watched her i thought of this –
that our kids falling in “mud puddles” is inevitable. it’s part of growing up.
and even though we see those things, try to warn them..
we cannot spare them from the dirt of this world.
all we can do is walk beside them through it.there to comfort. brush them off. watch them run on once more, finding their own way.
and though we get weary of the mundane –
having them close for us to take care of and teach is easy.
having to let go, to allow them to make mistakes. make their own choices…
knowing the mud and mire that awaits – that’s the hard part.but in all parts of this parenting journey i’m grateful for a Heavenly Father who is wisdom. grace. guidance. calm.
for the mud that smears across all our lives, He is the only answer!
amber.
Comments (13)
So grateful for that wisdom, grace and guidance!
Love your pictures..especially that first one.
Happy Weekend to you.
I love the way you allow God to speak to you through the experiences of everyday life. How you have ears to hear those things… And how you share them, so that we can learn as well. This is a powerful analogy!
And, I love the way your blog is looking! The soft colors are ever so pretty! Your header is always THE prettiest!
xoxo
Isn’t it amazing how much spiritual wisdom we gain from daily life.
The Lord used my children more than anything in my life to show me Himself! I love reading your thoughts on your children and your Lord!
our children… and this whole mothering thing teach us so much.
love this!! sooooo goood!
SO true! I always wished I could protect my kids from the “mud” of life, but I know that is not possible. We can just teach and equip them to recognize it and hopefully stop before they are sitting in the middle of it! And, when they do slip, as you said, we are there with a hand to help them up. Such a wonderful picture, Amber.
there is two ditches, the parents who do all they can to make sure their kids never have to face or experience mud. then the ones who just throw them head long into the mud. Walking the middle ~ keeping in step with the Holy Spirit, yes, now that’s the tough path. Because it means we can’t rely on pat answers and rules and how so and so did it. It means we have to relate with God first hand and with our kids first hand. Great great thoughts and man, I could talk this one a long time – I think we’ve got whole groupies of people herding in directions because it’s all about avoiding the mud, or even more so, claiming what the mud is and isn’t, etc. Your desire to walk with them in these years you can, yet at the same time, not hand cuffing them to your conscience/your personal walk with God – God will bless it and the fruit will be worth the tears.
A sweet post! Yes, we want to spare them the mud but it is only how they learn the powerful cleansing of His love.
What a darling! Wise momma you are! Love this ” we cannot spare them from the dirt of this world.
all we can do is walk beside them through it. there to comfort. brush them off. watch them run on once more, finding their own way.”
Need to start pinning Amber quotes
Thanks for sharing! Happy Spring and Happy Week to you all!
just feeling a great big sigh, a good one,
with that last sentence. mud happens. so do smears. but… HE happens too. whew. 
and i am forever grateful for how you put the words together to make it make sense for me. <3
love this post amber. and i’m laughing too, because i was thinking about Jesus and how good He is at cleaning us up when i found my strawberry jam jar upside down And Leaking in the back of my fridge recently. what you wrote correlates to the post i started… i’m not even kidding when i say that it feels like you peek in my head.
Everyday we learn from our children!
What a wonderful post! I’m not on Xanga much, but I think I’ll subscribe to you
Saw your comment at Mae’s site and was compelled to visit. Nice to see another sister in Christ. Blessings to you!