Parenting Interrupted

Two reasons why the talk at church today was interesting. First, the speaker was a visitor from the stake on assignment with the high counselor. She is in the Stake Relief Society presidency, I believe. Brilliant! I wish I had thought of having the stake women's auxiliaries speak on high counsel Sunday.

Second, she made an insightful point on parenting and mothering in particular. Her question was "What is interrupting what?" Meaning, are your children interrupting your housework? hobbies? work? Or is housework, hobbies, and schoolwork interrupting parenting your children? What are you really supposed to "do" in any given day?

I've been pondering this question a lot lately as I try to come to terms yet again with my role as a stay at home mom. I'm not always incredibly fond of or good at the job, and fantasize about my life after small children now and then.

I come back to two things. First, the desire to keep my children safe. For a pretty laid back mom, I'm incredibly overprotective and controlling of who has contact with my children. If anyone is going to yell and hit my kids, it's going to be me!!

Second, though it's been said to me many times, it's finally hitting home. This time when my children are small is almost over. If we are unable to have anymore children, I have just a year or so until G is in preschool. M's already gone for most of the day. I resented when people said how quickly those years flew. But now I say it to anyone who will listen. They fly. They're gone.

And so that and a few other things keeps me at home with the kiddies. And you know what? I don't resent them. I like them a lot. And I'm excited about what they are becoming. So for now, I do kids. I brush hair, practice reading, practice Hiragana, play ABC games, put puzzles together, play Easter hunt, make play dough, watch endless cartoons in Japanese and English, dance the chocho dance, and give endless hugs and kisses and band-aids. There's also discipline, manners, conflict resolution, time management, courtesy, music appreciation, and responsibility I teach on the side. It's good work, but vacation time is limited.

I wrote this in February, but finally finished it today.