Mommy Melt
Do you ever have those embarrassing moments when you just want to melt away into non-existence? I've done plenty of "stupid" stuff in my lifetime and, since becoming a mother those embarrassing moments have increased! Those times where my kids say or do something so humiliating....I call them "Mommy Melt" experiences!
I love when my kids behave like little angels in public. I love when our family is on time and completely in order. But, the reality is, those moments are rare! It takes a lot of effort, nagging, and (hate to admit, some yelling) to motivate my children into obedience.
Today, I'm going to share one of those "Mommy Melt" experiences that happened recently. The main character involves my 4 year old son. Now, if you're not familiar with the maturity of a 4 year old boy, I will attempt to educate you. Four year old boys (at least mine, anyway!) love attention. However, they haven't quite learned the difference between negative and positive actions to earn this attention. My son is very social and we've been TRYING to teach him about personal space...he loves to get right up in your face and physically touch your eyes, nose, and ears while attempting a conversation. Although he is a social butterfly, IF he is shy or in an unfamiliar place he will sometimes act out in a mean way, like randomly hitting or punching someone or something. So, you can see, I am still trying to wrap my motherly mind around the idea of raising a boy!
Anyways, now that you understand the background of having a 4 year old boy, this situation takes place in our home exactly 1 week ago. I called a serviceman out to diagnose an odd noise that my dryer had recently begun making. The man arrived and immediately began working after I told him the issue. I was quite proud of my clean, organized house and angelic, friendly children. In fact, everything was so peaceful, I actually sat down and read the newspaper! 45 minutes later, the issue was resolved and I was signing the final paperwork. The serviceman announced to J, my 4 year old, that he was leaving. Apparently, this fact upset J and his little mind told him that he needed to get attention and stop his new friend from leaving....so, he proceeded to punch the man....in the GROIN! <Insert MASSIVE MOMMY MELT!>
I was mortified, embarrassed and totally tongue-tied! The man recovered long before I did and suggested shaking hands instead. And, J's response?! Rudely slapping his hand away! <Insert 2nd MASSIVE MOMMY MELT!> I would love to brag that I patiently counseled my son that this was not an appropriate way to handle emotions, but no, I did nothing of the sort. I couldn't say a word because I was still in an utter sense of shock and embarrassment. Once the man was safely out the door, I sternly made it clear to J how very disappointed I was with his actions and that I had to discipline him to teach him that there are consequences to negative behavior like that.
As you can imagine, I mulled over this event a lot this week. Anger, disappointment, shame, frustration...I experienced all of these emotions. Thoughts like, "What was J thinking?" When will he learn? He always embarrasses me!" ran rampant through my head. But, God started tugging on my heart and I knew I needed to do some learning along with my son. He spoke, "Daughter, what are you thinking? When will YOU learn? Have you NEVER embarrassed me with your actions or speech before?" Ouch! That hurts the remaining ounces of pride I have left! But, it's true, I mess up a lot, but how does God respond? With grace, with love, with patience, with forgiveness...the way I'm supposed to respond to my little 4 year old when he, in his humanness, makes mistakes.
Proverbs 16:18-19 also comes to mind: Pride goes before destruction, And a haughty spirit before stumbling. It is better to be humble in spirit with the lowly than to divide the spoil with the proud.
He's learning, I'm learning, we're all learning!
God, help me to be humble in spirit, full of grace and wisdom that comes only from you!
I love when my kids behave like little angels in public. I love when our family is on time and completely in order. But, the reality is, those moments are rare! It takes a lot of effort, nagging, and (hate to admit, some yelling) to motivate my children into obedience.
Today, I'm going to share one of those "Mommy Melt" experiences that happened recently. The main character involves my 4 year old son. Now, if you're not familiar with the maturity of a 4 year old boy, I will attempt to educate you. Four year old boys (at least mine, anyway!) love attention. However, they haven't quite learned the difference between negative and positive actions to earn this attention. My son is very social and we've been TRYING to teach him about personal space...he loves to get right up in your face and physically touch your eyes, nose, and ears while attempting a conversation. Although he is a social butterfly, IF he is shy or in an unfamiliar place he will sometimes act out in a mean way, like randomly hitting or punching someone or something. So, you can see, I am still trying to wrap my motherly mind around the idea of raising a boy!
Anyways, now that you understand the background of having a 4 year old boy, this situation takes place in our home exactly 1 week ago. I called a serviceman out to diagnose an odd noise that my dryer had recently begun making. The man arrived and immediately began working after I told him the issue. I was quite proud of my clean, organized house and angelic, friendly children. In fact, everything was so peaceful, I actually sat down and read the newspaper! 45 minutes later, the issue was resolved and I was signing the final paperwork. The serviceman announced to J, my 4 year old, that he was leaving. Apparently, this fact upset J and his little mind told him that he needed to get attention and stop his new friend from leaving....so, he proceeded to punch the man....in the GROIN! <Insert MASSIVE MOMMY MELT!>
I was mortified, embarrassed and totally tongue-tied! The man recovered long before I did and suggested shaking hands instead. And, J's response?! Rudely slapping his hand away! <Insert 2nd MASSIVE MOMMY MELT!> I would love to brag that I patiently counseled my son that this was not an appropriate way to handle emotions, but no, I did nothing of the sort. I couldn't say a word because I was still in an utter sense of shock and embarrassment. Once the man was safely out the door, I sternly made it clear to J how very disappointed I was with his actions and that I had to discipline him to teach him that there are consequences to negative behavior like that.
As you can imagine, I mulled over this event a lot this week. Anger, disappointment, shame, frustration...I experienced all of these emotions. Thoughts like, "What was J thinking?" When will he learn? He always embarrasses me!" ran rampant through my head. But, God started tugging on my heart and I knew I needed to do some learning along with my son. He spoke, "Daughter, what are you thinking? When will YOU learn? Have you NEVER embarrassed me with your actions or speech before?" Ouch! That hurts the remaining ounces of pride I have left! But, it's true, I mess up a lot, but how does God respond? With grace, with love, with patience, with forgiveness...the way I'm supposed to respond to my little 4 year old when he, in his humanness, makes mistakes.
Proverbs 16:18-19 also comes to mind: Pride goes before destruction, And a haughty spirit before stumbling. It is better to be humble in spirit with the lowly than to divide the spoil with the proud.
He's learning, I'm learning, we're all learning!
God, help me to be humble in spirit, full of grace and wisdom that comes only from you!
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