Daily Prompt: Careful
Posted on October 9, 2016 Leave a Comment
Careful: our children are watching
Can parents be truly ready to raise children without imperfections, or do we continue to grow as we love, guide, and respect our children? I believe in the latter.
Many beliefs, thoughts, and actions we have as adults stem from our childhood. As a parent, I try to be mindful of what I do and say in front of my children. As any other parent, some days are more challenging than others. I try to see the more challenging days as an opportunity for growth for all involved. The opportunities for growth are then teachable moments. I believe that every child has the right to be happy, healthy, and have fun!
Given all of the recommendations by pediatric doctors, American Heart Association, and the American Pediatric Association, and others, I still struggle with certain aspects of parenting at times.
1. How much TV should our children watch? What shows or movies are best to watch given all of the different children shows.
2. When to stop children from taking naps especially when we are out of our routine i.e vacation, on a field trip, etc. We have a 2 and 5 year old, and if it was left to them, they would not nap and just fall out when they were beyond exhaustion….Yes..trust me. I know. They seriously need naps. Their attitudes are so much better when they have had a couple of hours of nap.
3. Being creative with healthy foods and helping our children to make healthy choices. I am very interested in using different herbs and seasonings. I am interested in making homemade hummus and have the recipe from one of my favorite chefs. I recently picked up a hummus mixture from our local Kroger to have something I can compare to when I make my own.
4. Promoting independence in our children and not just bitter about their responsibilities. There is always a way to get things done, and how my husband and I achieve the goal with our children being proud of themselves instead of tainted with bitter feelings and feeling as though they were just made to do something.
So, here are some steps/concepts I try to incorporate:
1. Continue to be abreast of guidelines recommended by trusted organizations. For some organizations, I have signed up for their newsletters and alerts.
2. Trust my gut/intuition. Be creative, open to suggestions, and be willing to step out of my comfort zone. Each child is unique. therefore, may respond differently. We have this internal barometer/guide/Holy Spirit that helps us make right decisions for ourselves and our loved ones.
2. We do not need to continue the past. If it did not work for you as a child, then there is no need to pass it on to your children or other loved ones. We were not able. Do you want to pass on love or hate? It is a choice.
3. Keep mindful of our interactions with others. Choose truth and words that will lift up and are positive. Keep your emotions in check. Even when you think your son or daughter is so involved in their video game, television, or some other distraction, they are still curious and may be listening to every word and watching every action. My children are so curious, and I find them modeling their parent’s behavior. We set the standards for our children that feed into their actions, beliefs, and thoughts as children.
4. Regularly check in with your children-thoughts, actions, beliefs to see how they are interpreting things and are their actions appropriate. When we regularly monitor our child’s behavior, we are able to modify and mold appropriate behavior, starting with ourselves first if need to.
I am enjoying the unfolding of who I am. I believe we are all on the journey to know our truths and to help others do the same.
Mika
Like & Share
How did I avoid an argument with my spouse?
Posted on October 9, 2016 5 Comments
I caught myself yesterday after speaking words that I knew would cause an argument. I was finishing up laundry from our recent vacation, and my spouse found more of his clothes that needed washing. I wanted to have laundry done by a certain time Friday morning, and I began feeling a little frustrated that there were more clothes that needed to be washed. If I had continued on the path I was on with feeling delayed and frustrated, and that I had all of the clothes that needed to be washed in the laudry room, and he did not, an argument with my spouse would have followed. I soon found out, after I decided to change my path, that I, too, had more clothes that needed to be washed.
An argument takes more than one person. I am in control of my thoughts and the words I speak. They can be words of love or words that come from anger, jealousy, frustration, or any other negative emotion/feeling. One of my favorite quotes by Napoleon Hill is “Direct your thoughts, control your emotions, and ordain your destiny.” So, I needed to change my thoughts, control my frustration, and pick a path in alignment with who I want to be.
Another quote that I was reminded on Friday is from the Book of Mathew, and it comes come :
Matthew 7: 4 &5 :How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ while there is still a beam in your own eye? You hypocrite! First take the beam out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.
Besides checking to see what mood or state I am in before I speak, here are the steps I I used to avoid an argument with my spouse yesterday:
1. Removed myself from where were I was. I left out of the laundry room and decided to be still and realized that what I had said was not called for. I could clearly see what he was doing, so I did not need to ask the question.
So, go to another room that allows you to clear your mind and reduce the risk of saying something else to ignite the fire of an argument? Removing myself from the room helped me to think about what I just said and what to say next.
2. Assessed my intention for the words I spoke? Why did I just say what I said? I was trying to complete all of our laundry early Friday morning, so that I could enjoy the rest of the day and do other things. I felt like he was putting me off schedule. I played a part in being off schedule by not communicating properly my intentions. Never did I communicate to my spouse that I was doing laundry and what color clothes I was washing next. I actually like doing laundry and feel blessed that I can do it myself.
3. Thought about what my spouse was going through. I was not the only person trying to finish something that morning. So, I put myself in the other person’s shoes and started talking about what was bothering him.
4.Kept focused on my goals for how I want my life and my marriage to be. Choose by battles, wisely! I want to live a long healthy vibrant youthful life with the one I love.
Mika
Like & Share
Border
Posted on October 8, 2016 Leave a Comment
<a href="https://dailypost.wordpress.com/prompts/border/">Border</a>
I was on the border, and I am making my way to the center of me-of what truly makes me happy, and how I want to live my life for the next years I am blessed with.
Are you on the border of following your dreams and still holding down a job that is just working for you and your family? Yes…the job pays your bills, but what about that dream or desire you have to be your own boss, a particular postion at the company you work for, and to develop and nurture the gifts and talents you have been blessed with? Do you hope to be a great singer someday? An artist for a cartoon network? Own your own traveling agency?
What gifts or talents have you been blessed with and have not taken the time to develop/nurture them? How can you serve others with your special gifts/talents? If you take the necessary time to develop and nurture your specific gifts/talents, could this be how you are supposed to make a successful living? Could this be the path to making a living on your own terms?
After pumping myself with positive thoughts and words and visualizing my future, today is the first Friday after our drive back from Illinois, which was a much-needed vacation. I had time to clear my mind yesterday as my children rode with my husband for a portion of the 7-hour drive back to Ohio. I thought about what I wanted to do for the rest of my life, and in preparation for my children to start school next year -pending that they go to private school, public school, or homeschool, I need to organize and plan personal time, career time, and family time. I want to not just be available when our children are home from school or during the early afternoon. I want to be present–to help them with their homework, to attend baseball practice, dance recitals, and so much more. I want to enjoy life to the fullest! I believe that we have been given certain gifts and talents by our Creator so that we may enjoy life and serve each other with our gifts and talents. I do believe that how we make a living can be enjoyable and not time-consuming, leaving much time for personal time and time with family and friends.
I have a few writing projects that I have been slowly working on for the past 4-5 years, and today, first Friday of October 2016, I made time for one of the projects and plan to finish by my set deadlines. I figure if I do not push forward with my goals, then when will I? If I continue to slowly work on the projects with no set deadlines or continue to push the deadlines to another date, when do I plan to finish my projects? If I do not consistently try to embrace and develop my gifts and talents, when will I?
So, I take the first Friday of the month of October 2016, and I am pushing forward to an inner calling to educate, empower, and inspire others through written and spoken words. I want to use the wisdom within to direct my steps. I want to pursue this journey of knowing who I am and serving others the best way I can.
Timika S Chambers 