Awhile ago, when Sweet Tween was about 5 years old, I had an interesting conversation with her. She was telling me all the things she wanted to be when she grew up. They included President of the United States, a Doctor or a Nurse, a Teacher, and a Princess. I asked her, “What about a Mommy too? That’s what I am.” She stopped to think about it for a bit and then replied very seriously, “Oh. Well that doesn’t seem very fun. Maybe my husband will take care of the kids.” I was amused but also a little saddened.
I wanted Sweet Tween and all my children to feel like they could do ANYTHING they put their minds to. Don’t get me wrong–I love the ambition my children possess. I am constantly feeding their brains with information and challenges. I love watching them soak up all that I teach them and more. But I felt then, that maybe I wasn’t showing her the JOY of motherhood. I wanted her to know that parenthood can be just as fun and fulfilling as any other job out there. Maybe I was so stressed with the cleaning and upbringing, that I wasn’t taking time to just have FUN. Now, I did realize that at the time I was pregnant with my 3rd child, living away from all family, and my husband was in his hardest year of med school. So sure, things were not so simple and peachy all the time. But for the first time it really hit me that I was her example of motherhood, and if I wasn’t enjoying it (or at least showing my joy in it) then she would have a harder time learning it herself someday.
So that’s when I decided to have more FUN as a mother. Being a Mom should be fun! I let go of some of the cleaning and organizing a little. I let go of trying to finish every task on my list. Instead, I tried to put some that energy into playtime with my children or meaningful experiences together (and sometimes that means working together as well). Now that doesn’t mean we are constantly having a bubbly-June Cleaver-type experience together all the time. But it did mean I would let the dishes go in order to get story time done. It did mean I would plan activities to do together and follow through with them. It did mean I would use the tiny bit of creativity I was given and put it to good use.
Turns out, I really do like being with my kidlets afterall . . .
