Dear God,
Forgive me for being a bad mother.
Amen
My son's runny nose from a week ago has turned into a full blown ear infection complete with fever of 105 degrees. He has not been getting any sleep or eating anything substantial or nutritious. He's been surviving on Quench (H-E-B's version of Gatorade full of red dye that's staining his teeth!). My husband and I took him to the doctor and she prescribed an antibiotic for the infection and said to alternate between Children's Motrin and Tylenol for the fever. He was protesting going school this morning but he didn't have a fever and would only say he was sleepy, so we made him go to school. Three hours later the school called and said he had a 103 fever. . .
Talk about a guilt complex.
The thing I have learned about being a parent (in a mere four years) is that raising a child is 50% instinctual and 50% prayer! I remember being very apprehensive when we brought my son home from the hospital after he was born. How would I know when he was hungry? What if he got sick? But almost instantly the mother instincts kicked in and it wasn't long before I was anticipating his needs and we eased into an automatic routine. Not to say there haven't been mistakes along the way because there have been (and there will continue to be mistakes, I'm certain) but I think as a parent when we make mistakes where our children are concerned we feel this tremendous amount of guilt because we feel like we should have known better or that we have failed them in some way.
I think if you give a child a safe and secure environment where they can thrive, instill values, expose them to the various wonders of life and LOVE them HARD even when they disappoint you- then that's about all anyone can expect. The rest will have to be up to them to use the tools you provide as they learn to navigate this world on their own.
There are some days I think I am doing a pretty good job at being a mother and then there are days that I think my son stays up too late at night, he doesn't eat enough vegetables or he needs to sleep in his own bed more often. Then I realize he's four and pretty soon he will be fourteen and he will go to bed earlier because he will be too tired to stay up after being in school all day, he will develop a voracious appetite and start eating everything in sight or he will probably become a hermit and lock himself in his room everyday. So I try to enjoy every single moment of his childhood and not worry so much about what the "experts" say because one day too soon this sweet little boy will be a man and he will have long abandoned my rules and start to live by his own rules.
I must admit my son is quite a gem. He is a very easy going and sensitive Pisces. I never experienced the terrible two's- they were terrific two's!! And he's already very well aware of what's acceptable behavior in and out of public and the consequences of getting it twisted! Yeah, I know just wait until he's a teenager- she says rolling eyes heavenward. My husband and I have certain parenting non-negotiables (no talking back, pay attention in school, always try your best, say please and thank you, don't talk to strangers, no whining, no hitting girls etc.) but we don't sweat the small stuff or implement a bunch of stringent rules because life is just too damn short. And besides our son isn't the only one learning on this journey.
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Tuesday, April 1, 2008
I Love This Job
Dear God,
Forgive me for being a bad mother.
Amen
My son's runny nose from a week ago has turned into a full blown ear infection complete with fever of 105 degrees. He has not been getting any sleep or eating anything substantial or nutritious. He's been surviving on Quench (H-E-B's version of Gatorade full of red dye that's staining his teeth!). My husband and I took him to the doctor and she prescribed an antibiotic for the infection and said to alternate between Children's Motrin and Tylenol for the fever. He was protesting going school this morning but he didn't have a fever and would only say he was sleepy, so we made him go to school. Three hours later the school called and said he had a 103 fever. . .
Talk about a guilt complex.
The thing I have learned about being a parent (in a mere four years) is that raising a child is 50% instinctual and 50% prayer! I remember being very apprehensive when we brought my son home from the hospital after he was born. How would I know when he was hungry? What if he got sick? But almost instantly the mother instincts kicked in and it wasn't long before I was anticipating his needs and we eased into an automatic routine. Not to say there haven't been mistakes along the way because there have been (and there will continue to be mistakes, I'm certain) but I think as a parent when we make mistakes where our children are concerned we feel this tremendous amount of guilt because we feel like we should have known better or that we have failed them in some way.
I think if you give a child a safe and secure environment where they can thrive, instill values, expose them to the various wonders of life and LOVE them HARD even when they disappoint you- then that's about all anyone can expect. The rest will have to be up to them to use the tools you provide as they learn to navigate this world on their own.
There are some days I think I am doing a pretty good job at being a mother and then there are days that I think my son stays up too late at night, he doesn't eat enough vegetables or he needs to sleep in his own bed more often. Then I realize he's four and pretty soon he will be fourteen and he will go to bed earlier because he will be too tired to stay up after being in school all day, he will develop a voracious appetite and start eating everything in sight or he will probably become a hermit and lock himself in his room everyday. So I try to enjoy every single moment of his childhood and not worry so much about what the "experts" say because one day too soon this sweet little boy will be a man and he will have long abandoned my rules and start to live by his own rules.
I must admit my son is quite a gem. He is a very easy going and sensitive Pisces. I never experienced the terrible two's- they were terrific two's!! And he's already very well aware of what's acceptable behavior in and out of public and the consequences of getting it twisted! Yeah, I know just wait until he's a teenager- she says rolling eyes heavenward. My husband and I have certain parenting non-negotiables (no talking back, pay attention in school, always try your best, say please and thank you, don't talk to strangers, no whining, no hitting girls etc.) but we don't sweat the small stuff or implement a bunch of stringent rules because life is just too damn short. And besides our son isn't the only one learning on this journey.
Comments Closed
Forgive me for being a bad mother.
Amen
My son's runny nose from a week ago has turned into a full blown ear infection complete with fever of 105 degrees. He has not been getting any sleep or eating anything substantial or nutritious. He's been surviving on Quench (H-E-B's version of Gatorade full of red dye that's staining his teeth!). My husband and I took him to the doctor and she prescribed an antibiotic for the infection and said to alternate between Children's Motrin and Tylenol for the fever. He was protesting going school this morning but he didn't have a fever and would only say he was sleepy, so we made him go to school. Three hours later the school called and said he had a 103 fever. . .
Talk about a guilt complex.
The thing I have learned about being a parent (in a mere four years) is that raising a child is 50% instinctual and 50% prayer! I remember being very apprehensive when we brought my son home from the hospital after he was born. How would I know when he was hungry? What if he got sick? But almost instantly the mother instincts kicked in and it wasn't long before I was anticipating his needs and we eased into an automatic routine. Not to say there haven't been mistakes along the way because there have been (and there will continue to be mistakes, I'm certain) but I think as a parent when we make mistakes where our children are concerned we feel this tremendous amount of guilt because we feel like we should have known better or that we have failed them in some way.
I think if you give a child a safe and secure environment where they can thrive, instill values, expose them to the various wonders of life and LOVE them HARD even when they disappoint you- then that's about all anyone can expect. The rest will have to be up to them to use the tools you provide as they learn to navigate this world on their own.
There are some days I think I am doing a pretty good job at being a mother and then there are days that I think my son stays up too late at night, he doesn't eat enough vegetables or he needs to sleep in his own bed more often. Then I realize he's four and pretty soon he will be fourteen and he will go to bed earlier because he will be too tired to stay up after being in school all day, he will develop a voracious appetite and start eating everything in sight or he will probably become a hermit and lock himself in his room everyday. So I try to enjoy every single moment of his childhood and not worry so much about what the "experts" say because one day too soon this sweet little boy will be a man and he will have long abandoned my rules and start to live by his own rules.
I must admit my son is quite a gem. He is a very easy going and sensitive Pisces. I never experienced the terrible two's- they were terrific two's!! And he's already very well aware of what's acceptable behavior in and out of public and the consequences of getting it twisted! Yeah, I know just wait until he's a teenager- she says rolling eyes heavenward. My husband and I have certain parenting non-negotiables (no talking back, pay attention in school, always try your best, say please and thank you, don't talk to strangers, no whining, no hitting girls etc.) but we don't sweat the small stuff or implement a bunch of stringent rules because life is just too damn short. And besides our son isn't the only one learning on this journey.
Comments Closed