Motherly Advice

Random thoughts on parenthood and child-rearing, a motherly advice of sorts.

“Be obedient to your parents,” and “honor your father and your mother.”—Ephesians 6:1, 2 .
“Do not despise your mother just because she has grown old.” Proverbs 23:22

Before being parents to our children, we are children to our own parents. The advice above is one that  I keep even now, it is after all, the first command with a promise…‘That it may go well with you and you may endure a long time on the earth,’ continues the proverb.

At this age, obeying our parents or the elderly seem to be be an out of trend thing, sadly. Times have changed and if you observe closely, children are much more hard-headed than we once were. 🙂 So even at our age, honoring our parents is still a timely advice. This is so because when our kids see we respect our own parents, it will be a good example for them…and we both will benefit later on.

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“Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, so are the children of one’s youth. How happy is the man whose quiver is filled with them!” (Psalm 127:4, 5, An American Translation)

The value of an arrow is determined by how well it is aimed as it leaves the bow. An arrow must be aimed with care and skill so that it will hit the target. In like manner, it is vital that, as parents, you wisely and prayerfully ponder on the kind of start in life you will give your child. Will he or she on leaving your care become a balanced and mature adult, respected by others and an honor to God? How many more years do you have to learn the outcome? I have about 10 and I fervently hope when the time comes I can proudly say, I did it right!

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Children too need to feel appreciated. Not that parents should shower them with empty flattery, but they should commend their children’s praiseworthy qualities and the genuine good that they do. Wise parents likewise find ways to express appreciation for each child’s unique qualities, abilities, and accomplishments. At the same time, they try not to emphasize accomplishments so much that their children constantly feel driven to perform. They do not want their children to grow up exasperated or downhearted.—Ephesians 6:4; Colossians 3:21.

Spend Time With Your Kids

The Bible says: “As apples of gold in silver carvings is a word spoken at the right time for it.” (Proverbs 25:11) As this scripture makes clear, timing is often the key. We need to learn to read between the lines…and be a shoulder the children could lean on…

You’d think that I’m a lazy person, that I do not want to work and I leave all the money-raising to hubby…

Let’s analyze, say I go to work from 9-5…little boy would be at the daycare until 3 while my 2 older kids would be in school from 8 to 12 (sometimes 1). They would  then go to the the after-school institution (Hort) to eat lunch,do some homework, play and at times have field trips. The hort is open until 5:30 in the afternoon so there would be 30 minutes to go rushing and pick them up…how about the little boy? Oh, we just had to pay a babysitter to pick him up and stay with him at home for 2-3 hours more.

What about dinner? If you pay the babysitter extra bucks then maybe she can cook and iron the clothes too and clean the house as well…so where would my paycheck go anyway? lol.

Point is, I do not need to sacrifice my time to work long hours then pay for a babysitter and helper when I can do home work myself. True, we never get paid for doing the things we do at home…working moms seem to be tougher than us staying at home…but at the end of the day, I can proudly say “today, I cooked sinigang that the kids enjoyed so well!”

I know, my time will come, when my kids grow a bit bigger, when they can go home from school on their own, when they’re allowed to have house keys, I will have my own time. In the mean time, I’m a stay at home mom and I will stay to be one until the right time comes.

P.S. (Paid blogging is helpful by the way…) 😉

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