Communication FUNdamentals

Mar. 13, 2007

Tuesday Tip: Treasure every moment with your children for...

Today is my daughter's 17th birthday!  It's hard to believe that the little bundle who refused to be swaddled has grown up to be such a fine young lady!  Where did the time go? It feels like it was only yesterday that her father and I brought her home from the hospital with parental instructions that proved inaccurate and woefully lacking!  They told us to swaddle her in order to make her comfortable and to breastfeed her every 2-3 hours.  From the get go, Kelsey had her own ideas about life! Kelsey refused to be swaddled and screamed when we did.  She liked her arms outside the blankie.  This 6lb 13oz child was able to defeat the work of two grown adults in a manner remaniscent of Houdini's straight jacket escape!  And as for feeding, well...her wants differed from the 'schedule' the hospital suggested.  During the day it was just about every 2-3 minutes and, at night, I thought she was going to starve to death so I would wake her up!  Silly mommy!  When you are nursing an infant,  you treasure every moment and have time looking at their suckling face to memorize every feature.  Unfortunately, as they grow (and as your family grows) you have neither the time nor the forethough to do so.  May I take this moment to encourage those of you with younger children to make the time!  Make the time to discuss their thoughts. Make the time to share yourself. Make the time to get to know who they are. Make the time to make memories that will sustain you when they are no longer with you every day! We have special Mother-Daughter memories that I will have to be content with to keep me company when she goes away to college in a year.  (sniff...)  I am grateful that I got to know this precious child of God for she is truly a treasure!  One of the most important parenting issues is communication between parent and child.  I don't mean the type of communication where mom tells her daughter to clean the kitchen or do her homework.  Or even the kind of communication that goes on in a homeschool.  I mean the kind of communication where the parent and child can really connect and get to know who they each are.  I mean the kind of communication that helps moms and dads know who their child really is on the inside.  I mean the kind of communication that lets the child know that they are special, loved, treasured and the kind that lets them know that the Lord has a special plan for their life!  I hear so many parents (homeschoolers and not) say that they don't really know their teen.  They don't understand them.  I have seen teens from a good Christian home go off and do things contrary to their parents beliefs (and their OWN!) because some boy said they loved her...because some kid said it would be FUN...because some adult connected with them on a level their parents never did.  The key to good parenting is communication.  It won't assure you of having a child that will do no wrong, but it will increase the odds that your child will feel loved, special, precious, listened to, cared for, important...  This is what shapes who they are.  This is what solidifies their faith.  This is what keeps them from listening to some idiot who tells them that life could be so much better if they would only (insert anti establishment activity here!).  The more you share with your children, the more they know who you are and the more you know who THEY are.  The more  you share with your children, the more memories you will have to treasure when they are no longer a face you can see across the dinner table.  When their voice is only on the other end of a telephone.  When they are no longer close enough to bump into a discussion.  Looking back on 17 years, I just want to cry when I think that I only have a year left with this precious child....who is no longer a child but a fine young lady.  May the Lord grant me time each day to treasure her.  May He continue to allow me to make those precious memories I can hold onto when she is no longer available for hugs.  May He allow me to continue to communicate with her so that we will always be close.  Happy birthday to my dear, sweet 17 year-old daughter!  I love you! From JoJo's Purple Crayon...

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Comments

Mar. 14, 2007 - Great points!

Posted by ReviewsbyHeidi

Thanks for the reminder~ they definitely grow up too fast. I'm seeing that with Ian~ and want to treasure every minute with him~ even those middle-of-the-night ones! Happy Birthday, Kelsey!

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