I wrote this a while back after the first time Daniel sass-mouthed me.
A Mother's Love...
He looks at me with those gorgeous blue eyes
The ones I fell in love with
As I held him, newly born and smelling sweet
And he says to me disgustedly,
“Why should I clean my room?”
Wwwwhhhhhyyyyy….?
My eyes roll back into my head so far I fear I will be blinded by the nerve of this precious child.
Why should you clean your room?
You should clean your room because I carried you INSIDE my body for 9 long months
Vomiting DAILY for 6 of those.
Before laboring without drugs for 24 hours fearing that an epidural would do harm to your dear brain..
After which you screamed for 6 weeks straight.
And spit up for 30
You should clean your room because I wiped up YOUR s*@#, YOUR vomit, YOUR snot….
I cleaned the messes you made every day, whether I liked it or not…
I did your laundry,
Cut your fingernails
Held you when you were scared
Told you I loved you when no one else cared.
I sang to you and stroked your hair.
told you I would always always be there…
And I meant it. Still do.
I read to you every night.
Held you very very tight…
Taught you how to make friends
And how to keep them
Cried when you cried from pain
Kept you going again and again….
I quit my job, which I loved because I loved you more
Held my head high when you threw a temper tantrum in the department store…
Even though I have never ever been more embarrassed
in my entire life.
I did my best to teach you courage, honesty, truth
Forgiveness and kindness and wisdom in youth…
You should clean your room because
I have tried to do what’s best for you every single day of your life.
So when I say, “It’s time to clean your room.”
It’s time to clean your effing room.
And you’ll do it because I said so.
Then I thought about it when I was pray/whine/grumbling to God while trying to get out of the door on time this morning... Whhhhhhhyyyyyy does it have to be so stinkin difficult to leave the stinkin house?! Whhhhhyyyy can't they just listen to me?! Whhhhhhhyyy is there so much stuff and so many delays? Why is everything about being a parent so hard? Why do I have to do all of the things? Why do I have to do the laundrying, dishing, cleaning, cooking, poop-cleaning, vomit-catching, and the pick-things-up-a-million-times-ing...?
And I wonder if maybe God's up there feeling the same thing I do when one of my kids whines about not getting enough ipad time or throws a fit about eating broccoli or doing homework or cleaning his room...
And maybe I should be spending more time focusing on the fact that I have clothes to clean and fold. I have food to make the dishes dirty. I have kids who poop and vomit because their immune systems are working properly. Our family has things that need to be picked up a million times...
And maybe God, like my mother, has four little words for me in times like these: because I said so.
Being a parent is hard because God says so. And maybe I should trust the fact that He, you know, made the universe and aligned everything just so I could be a mom and live that dream... among other things. Cause, you know, getting 4 sets of socks and shoes on and lunches packed and kids pottied, etc. is sooo much harder than like running the whole universe and stuff.
Guess I was wrong when I told myself I would "never tell my kids 'because I said so.'"
It's actually a really good reason to do something when the one saying it is someone who really really loves you and wants what's best for you.
And he says to me disgustedly,
“Why should I clean my room?”
Wwwwhhhhhyyyyy….?
My eyes roll back into my head so far I fear I will be blinded by the nerve of this precious child.
Why should you clean your room?
You should clean your room because I carried you INSIDE my body for 9 long months
Vomiting DAILY for 6 of those.
Before laboring without drugs for 24 hours fearing that an epidural would do harm to your dear brain..
After which you screamed for 6 weeks straight.
And spit up for 30
You should clean your room because I wiped up YOUR s*@#, YOUR vomit, YOUR snot….
I cleaned the messes you made every day, whether I liked it or not…
I did your laundry,
Cut your fingernails
Held you when you were scared
Told you I loved you when no one else cared.
I sang to you and stroked your hair.
told you I would always always be there…
And I meant it. Still do.
I read to you every night.
Held you very very tight…
Taught you how to make friends
And how to keep them
Cried when you cried from pain
Kept you going again and again….
I quit my job, which I loved because I loved you more
Held my head high when you threw a temper tantrum in the department store…
Even though I have never ever been more embarrassed
in my entire life.
I did my best to teach you courage, honesty, truth
Forgiveness and kindness and wisdom in youth…
You should clean your room because
I have tried to do what’s best for you every single day of your life.
So when I say, “It’s time to clean your room.”
It’s time to clean your effing room.
And you’ll do it because I said so.
Then I thought about it when I was pray/whine/grumbling to God while trying to get out of the door on time this morning... Whhhhhhhyyyyyy does it have to be so stinkin difficult to leave the stinkin house?! Whhhhhyyyy can't they just listen to me?! Whhhhhhhyyy is there so much stuff and so many delays? Why is everything about being a parent so hard? Why do I have to do all of the things? Why do I have to do the laundrying, dishing, cleaning, cooking, poop-cleaning, vomit-catching, and the pick-things-up-a-million-times-ing...?
And I wonder if maybe God's up there feeling the same thing I do when one of my kids whines about not getting enough ipad time or throws a fit about eating broccoli or doing homework or cleaning his room...
And maybe I should be spending more time focusing on the fact that I have clothes to clean and fold. I have food to make the dishes dirty. I have kids who poop and vomit because their immune systems are working properly. Our family has things that need to be picked up a million times...
And maybe God, like my mother, has four little words for me in times like these: because I said so.
Being a parent is hard because God says so. And maybe I should trust the fact that He, you know, made the universe and aligned everything just so I could be a mom and live that dream... among other things. Cause, you know, getting 4 sets of socks and shoes on and lunches packed and kids pottied, etc. is sooo much harder than like running the whole universe and stuff.
Guess I was wrong when I told myself I would "never tell my kids 'because I said so.'"
It's actually a really good reason to do something when the one saying it is someone who really really loves you and wants what's best for you.
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