Polka Dot Days of Motherhood

This is one of my favorite places, my front porch. 
And these darling polka dot pillows were a mothers day gift.  I simply adore them (my girls and my new pillows. In case you were wondering). Funny how polka dots can brighten a person's outlook,  making them  happy even on the grumpiest of  days and bringing refreshment to those tired out hearts of ours.

Speaking of tired hearts... one thing that can wear us out completely is motherhood. How exactly does a woman wrap her mind, her heart around it? It captures every ounce of her soul and requires every ounce of her will. 

Every ounce.

 It gives so much, but it also requires so much... so much more than I think I have in me some days... okay, a lot of days.

I want to share some 'polka dot kind of words' from Ann Voscamp (author of One Thousand Gifts) with you. I trust it will be a breath of fresh air to your spirit today dear one.

If we’re honest– and what else is there really — there were burnt dinners and yelling mornings and neck strained words over lost shoes and scattered Lego's and unfinished homework and there were crumpled tears behind bathroom doors.

Not to mention the frozen pizzas and no clean underwear and the wild words no one would want the cameras rolling for.

And the realization — that a mother’s labor and delivery never ends and you never stop having to remember to breathe.

The deal is — Motherhood isn’t sainthood and we’re all a bunch of sinners here and don’t let anyone tell you any different — pushing something out of your womb doesn’t make you a better woman. Real Womanhood isn’t a function of becoming a great mother, but of being loved by your Great Father. Someone write that on a card with a bouquet of flowers. We all need that.

A mother's labor and delivery never ends and you never stop having to remember to breathe.   What insightful words. It's so true! It's been a long time since I delivered my little ones. But Ann is right, the laboring continues. The remembering to breathe deep & steady is as critical today as it was 16 years ago. I have two great teenagers and one sweet  tween in my house now. Gone are the days of toys on the floor, spilt milk, sticky fingers, crying toddlers, kids hanging on me, babies sucking on me, showering with the bathroom door open and basic lack of personal space (hear my sigh).   But I can tell you these days, these days with independent kids and bathroom doors shut and long showers and leaving the house all by myself and NO diaper bag and NO potty training ... these days  are still exhausting... emotionally, spiritually and yes, physically. Just in a different sort of way. 

 Our evenings are spent on hard bleachers so we can cheer for and believe in our kids. They know we are there. They see us. They sense our presence. They hear our voices of assurance and support. It's everything to them... just like it was when they were 8 months old.  It's different now, but  still so much the same.  We sit for hours  in the snow, in the rain, in the heat, in the cold.  We used to sit with them for hours playing and reading books... to bond, to invest.  Now we sit and watch them from a distance... and do the same. 

 Every new season of parenting is about

 Finding A  New Way.
Finding a new way to love. 

Finding a new way to stay connected.

 Finding a new way to bond. 

Finding a new way to believe. 

Finding  new ways to say you are important to me, you matter, I am here.

I remember cheering for my  son when he was 2 as he flew down the slide all by himself and managed to land on his feet safely in the sand.   Now my son is 16 and I still cheer for him when he slides in the sand  only now it's safely into 2nd base.  Nothing really changes at it's core... always  Love, always Presence.  Looking for new ways. That's what parenting is.  It takes us not sleeping through the most exhausting years of our lives. 
Stay awake through this.
You'll be so glad you did.

Today, in the midst of the emotions and changes puberty brings, the cruelness of teenage girls, the unfairness of life, GPA's to maintain, first jobs to navigate, cars to drive,  practices to endure, coaches to please, schedules to fulfill, temptations real, pressures mounting, serious decisions to be made... I have to remember  to breathe deep as I walk my kids through this thing called life... the labor and delivery of my children never ends...

 it changes its rhythm

 but it never ends.

So young mom, veteran mom, we are in this for the long haul, for the marathon... it's a beautiful thing, a precious gift, a role we can thrive in... if we will just remember 

 to Love , to Breathe and to give Presence. 

You and I are God's beloved daughters. He is pleased with you and delighted in you.  Sit in that place, bask in that knowledge, settle into that truth, because from what I'm told,  motherhood  never gets easy. Empty Nester's will tell you they worry more for their kids now than when they were raising them. Hard to believe, unless we remember that the laboring and delivering never ends.

So, I kindly invite  you to stop holding your breath, you know, waiting for the season when it will be  

Easy. Simple. Light. Free. 

It never will be. Not ever.

But that's okay
 because when we learn to breathe deep, love with presence and function like we know we are God's beloved... I promise, we will experience 'polka dot' kind of days where rest is found, smiles abound and hearts are stilled even on the grumpiest of days. 

With you on this journey that requires every ounce we have and grateful for a  God who supplies it and replenishes it abundantly and daily,

Amy Joy