Isn't he a cutie?! Oh how I love my babies when they're so little. There's just something about them that fulfills a part of me like nothing else does. I love being my babies' favorite person. Dads get to be the fun one in the coming years so I particularly relish this. I can not get enough of this little man! He is just so cute and fun!
Last week in the midst of preparing for Easter and family coming to visit I was also pondering General Conference messages and thinking about my mothering. Now that Jake is crawling and beginning to pull up on things, he topples over a lot. I find myself running to scoop him up and sooth him, let him know his momma loves him and will make it all better. I make time to get down on the floor and just be there with him, focused on him and not distracted by chores or the computer. I feel like I mother my babies pretty darn well because I enjoy it so much but I struggle to maintain it as they're getting older. Their needs are less wrote, less visible and it's harder to gauge my success because the milestones are life lessons not displayed on a growth chart.
Often I let the duties of motherhood run the show rather than participating in the fleeting joys of motherhood. Do they know and feel my love so deliberately given so often if for no other reason than because I must hold them for a moment or I'll burst? For a couple days last week, I made a true effort on this front and found great joy in it.
It's been on my mind because of Sister Esplin's talk about the importance of helping our children understand true gospel truths so that it is part of them and "reflected in their attitudes and behavior throughout their lives . . . Our role as parents is to do all we can to create an atmosphere where our children can feel the influence of the Spirit and then help them recognize what they are feeling." I loved this talk and the ideas I am having as I think about it. I'm working on creating that atmosphere even if it's as mundane as repainting the living room and reorienting furniture. But more importantly, I hope my kids feel love in our home, see love and kindness from me to them and others, see the gospel truths of faith and repentance in action from me, hear me pray for them, see me in love with their dad. What a great conference!
