Mother's Day Thoughts From Mom and Grandmother~

Here Is A Bouquet Of Love For Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day Wishes to all of our lovely daughters,

daughter in laws and granddaughter in laws~
 

We would like you all to know how grateful we are to have you in our family. Not only have you increased our posterity to 31 grandchildren, but we have 3 great grandchildren and 
we also claim three more as well. You are all great mothers and wives; which is such a blessing to us. We marvel at all that you do on a daily basis to serve the needs of your family. You live in a complex world with many problems; so child rearing is your career.

 

I feel that being a mother is the greatest job in the world. It is also the hardest. I loved being a mother and grandmother. I really am enjoying my grandchildren and great grandchildren. They are the best ever.

Through the good times and the hard times of raising children I have learned many lessons. Here are a few thoughts about what I have learned through the years as a mother. 

1. Leave some moments of each day just for you. Perhaps you could take a bubble bath and just relax. Keep in mind however that you will probably have little ones knocking at your door. Just love them and ask  them to give you a few minutes to relax. You can always assign an older child to watch the younger ones while you take a break.You can also use this time to read a good book, or take a nap.  Find something you really love to do and do it; that is what makes a great moment.  Now I can say from experience that when I had children at home, I required that they take a nap or have quiet time for at least 30 minutes every day. It usually worked. Children need to learn to be quiet and peaceful for at least 30 minutes. They can play a quiet game, draw or read. Older children can be in charge and help to keep the littler ones quiet by entertaining them.

2. I tried not to over schedule my children with too many outside activities. We let them choose a sport if they were interested in doing that. We also had them take lessons such as piano, vocal, other instruments and art. The Church activities such as Primary, Young Women, Young Men; Scouting and etc. were top priority. When you have them too involved they can become stressed out and trust me you will be too by the time you drive them to all of the activities. Children need time to be children. Let them play outside more than playing on the computer, I Pad or texting. Children need to use their imagination more.

3. Keep your voice calm. OK, I will admit I had a struggle with this one. I remember clearly being taught that the only time you yell is when your house is on fire. This came from the wisdom of President David O. McKay the prophet of our church when we were raising our children. He and his wife had 6 children too. I do think that keeping your voice calm is good. This is a goal to achieve. I did find out that instead of yelling at my children sometimes whispering helped. They actually listened. Children tend to tune you out if you are always yelling at them. A great scripture that I memorized more than once was : Proverbs 15:1 "A soft answer turneth away wrath; but grievous words stir up anger."

4. Quiet Music; how I loved to play quiet calming music. This helps the home to have a calm atmosphere. It also helps children to learn about different kinds of quiet music such as classical, religious, or just quiet ballads.

5. Be in the moment with your children. By this thought I think it is important to create fun moments when you can just enjoy the children or child. I think that having one on one times is a very good thing to do.They need to have time with just you alone. When children come to you with a question or wanting to share something with you; give them your full attention. Turn a way from all the technology and just bask in the time you have with these precious children. They all grow up so fast; so put away your I-Pad, Computer, I Phone and enjoy your children.

6. The best and last thought is that I wish I had used the scriptures as my parenting manual.There are so many powerful stories that you can teach to your children as they test the limits and experience their own agency.

Here are the things that I think are important to do every day: Read the scriptures as an individual and as a family, have family prayer every morning and night, and hold a regular Family Home Evening each week. Also, I think it is important to talk with your spouse and set goals for your family, plan fun activities and develop family traditions. Just learn to relax and enjoy your children. Enjoy the journey of raising your children. It also helps to have at least one meal a day together; this is crucial in this fast paced world. Connect with your children, don't let media and technology steal away your time together.

Wishing you all a marvelous Mother's Day and here is a video I thought you would all enjoy.