We LOVE being outdoors!! Every time the skies are clear, we are outside playing, hiking, and riding bikes. It's just so cleansing & invigorating to breathe in the fresh, crisp air. We recently went on a hike to our favorite trail on Monte Sano and took my sisters along with us. We had such a fun time! Drew and Gracie ran the entire time; Sarah and I tried to keep up, and Sean and the dog lead the way. We stopped to look at bugs and flowers, and then got ice cream cones at the little camp supply store. I really enjoyed being able to talk to the kids while we walked. We talked about their friends and their sports and their bullies and their newest knock-knock jokes. We just talked and walked. As I listened, I began taking myself back to their age and thinking of all of the things I wanted to protect them from. If I could, I would just wrap them up and stick them in my pocket, safe from all temptation and worry until they were eighteen or so. Although the pocket idea is rather brilliant, I realized that that isn't my purpose as a mother or as a sister, but instead my job is to love them unconditionally, to be a friend, and teach them right from wrong through example. So, as helpless as I felt while listening to the woes of McKenna calling Drew names at school and Sarah forgetting to put her name on her paper, I realized that I was helping just by listening. So, here's hoping that there's many more days of walking and talking with those I love most.
6 comments:
This post gave me chill bumps. I love the pocket idea...too bad they grow so quickly!
Yey!
I'm so excite you decided to become a "blogger" lol ;)
I feel the same way you do, even more so since Noah has arrived in my life... He's openned up my eyes and mind more then i could possibly imagine... And i can only imagine the trials and worldy problems our children are going to face... But then i notice they have so much Faith and so much energy and understanding... I can already tell noah was Soooooooooo much more faithful in the preexistance, then i was myself :P
They're a strong crop of chillins... it's just going to be hard to watch... eeeeek! :)
I've already decided i'm going to home school noah, until atleast high school... Lol... I sure hope i can :P
I love this post! I have been thinking recently about this so much lately. I feel an overwhelming sense of responsibility to teach my girls what is right. It really is true that the best thing we can do is teach by example. I just wish it was easier! I feel like I'm crazy half of the time!
Hey Sis thanks for sending me the blog. I love it even though there are not many pictures of me love you
Amanda- I love your blog! I know exactly how you feel! I have had the same feelings as a I watch my girls. I really found comfort in the article about nurturing our children in this last April Ensign. The lady talked about how we can't live our children's lives for them, but we can give them a good supply of happy memories to draw from as they grow to help make them better moms and dads someday. I saw your post and thought- you are doing just that! What a fun memory they will have of your fun bike ride- I imagine you are such a sweet mom- so creative and fun- I wish we didn't live on opposite sides of the nation :) so we could bike ride and make a couple memories together! :) Thanks for your sweet example though- even with all the distance between! :)
I totally know how you feel! Growing up, I always thought my mom was sooo overprotective, but now I think that I am going to be so much worse.. haha Like you said, we have to be good examples, teach them right from wrong, and hope that they will make correct choices. That's going to be so hard to do when you want so badly to protect them from all of the bad things in the world!!
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