I kept my cool all morning! After all, this is Day 3. I can still do this. Yet when it came time for Maisy to pull on her shoes and coat for preschool, she had a total meltdown! One of those no-apparent-reason-for-tears, runny nose, raised voice tantrums that can set me off, especially (as in today) when we are running late. But I remained calm - yay!
Then - oh, the injustice - as I buckled Maisy into her car seat, she accused me of being mean to her this morning. What?! At first, I verbally disagreed, as if telling her that "no, I wasn't mean" was going to have any kind of effect on her 3-year-old state of mind. As if she would stop and say "You're right, Mommy, actually you've been quite nice in spite of my crabbiness." ;) Luckily, I quickly realized the road I was going down, and I stopped myself. (I don't always manage this.) I turned off the radio and put on a CD she likes, and within 2 minutes, she was giggling at a song and telling me I was a funny mommy. Oh, three!
It's a reminder of why I'm doing this though: Not to change HER behavior necessarily (though that would be a nice side effect), but to change my own behavior. A 3-year-old's emotions are clearly out of my control, but I can try to control my own.
So here we are, Day 3, and today is all about Joy, regardless!
Joy. Joy instead of anger sounds pretty good, right? One of the fruits of the Spirit is JOY. Not happiness. Happiness is like ice cream. It's delicious, but it lasts only until it's been eaten or it melts. In my house, it melts when we've busted out the ice cream prematurely thinking both kids are asleep. So we're celebrating this one hour of shared freedom in our day, and then Tucker starts bawling, or Maisy tiptoes into the room and peeks over the edge of the couch. I want you to know that we eat the ice cream anyway, even after it has melted. Because we believe in happiness.
But JOY. Joy comes straight from the Lord. (Well, so does ice cream.)
Psalm 5:11
But let all who take refuge in you be glad;
let them ever sing for joy.
Spread your protection over them,
that those who love your name may rejoice in you
I love this verse. So many promises! We can take refuge in the Lord, sing for joy, and God will spread his protection over us. We can rejoice in Him!
Day 3: Start with Praise... and Pray for Joy Today
Day 3: Rediscover Joy in my Children
What about my children brings me joy? Sometimes I get so caught up in the day to day that I don't see it. It was easier for me when they were tiny, warm little bundles, brand new life, straight from God and into my arms. When my babies were literally curled up next to my heart, joy was inevitable. Diaper blowouts were inevitable too, the really messy kind, and some pretty sleep-deprived nights, but I'll never forget the joy of holding my newborn babies.
It's different now, the joy stuff, but still there. I just forget to notice sometimes.
So today I'm going to look for it and maybe even write it down, the joy my children bring me, so that I can see the good in them today. I think if I'm looking for the joy, it's going to be easier to overlook some of the other stuff. I could even write it down on a special note, and read it to Maisy, a reason she brings me joy.
Day 3: Laugh
I saw this video on Facebook yesterday and laughed out loud. I think it fits well here. I hope it makes you laugh too:
No comments:
Post a Comment