Life with littles: just that phrase can make our anxiety go up as moms. The days are long and the demands are endless. You think you’ve successfully got your little man playing with his toys, only to have him whining for your attention two minutes later. You tidy the living room and sweep the floor while your toddler is napping, only to have your beautiful work destroyed within thirty seconds of his waking up. (Even as I write this, my two-year-old son was supposed to be eating his breakfast – chocolate banana bread, mind you! – in his high chair. Instead, he was eating a bite or two and crumbling most of it on the floor!)
Why is it that we think of the negatives when we think of raising little people? I have heard so many women indicate things like “my life is over now that I have kids” or “have your fun before you have babies, because it’s all over then” or “raising littles makes pursuing my career super difficult”. At least in America, the idea of kids is made out to be this huge ordeal that is apparently a mundane burden. This is unfortunately even true among Christian circles. Young people approaching marriage are encouraged to “space out your children where you can afford them” or “enjoy your life together before you have kids because everything changes after they come”. You know the kinds of things I’m talking about – we have all heard them.
May I encourage my fellow mamas today to reconsider and reevaluate the responsibility of raising littles. Instead of focusing on the “negatives”, let’s remind ourselves of what God has to say about raising children:
- “My life is over now that I have kids”:
- That they may teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children. Titus 2:4
- She looketh well to the ways of her household, and eateth not the bread of idleness. Proverbs 31:27
- And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply… Genesis 1:28a
- “Have your fun before you have babies, because it’s all over then”:
- Lo, children are an heritage of the LORD: and the fruit of the womb is his reward. Psalm 127:3
- “Raising littles makes pursuing my career super difficult”:
- As arrows are in the hand of a mighty man; so are children of the youth. Psalm 127:4
In closing, may we also remember that there are so many women around us who wish to have children, yet find themselves barren. On days that we feel overwhelmed by the little people in our lives, let us remember that there are women right next to us who are feeling overwhelmed by the loss of little people they never met. Let us not be so quick to complain about the amazing role of motherhood God has given to us.
The most important thing in your life when you have your babies is to remember this is your major job! They grow up way too fast, and yes, your days can be long and weary, but one of these days they will be gone and all you have are your memories. So make those memories good ones. Your housework and your laundry will be there long after your babies are gone. So keeping a neat house is not the most important thing and don’t let it get you down when it is messy, when those babies are grown and gone you will have plenty of time to clean house.
I was very encouraged by this today. I am half way through my 2nd pregnancy and my oldest is only 15 months old and I have felt much worse this time around. Many days I just feel so overwhelmed and tired and I start to think I made a mistake. But verses like help me remember to think long term and focus on the end reward, not the immediate trials.
Oh! So good and true. They are grown so fast.