New Mama, You're Not Missing Out on Life

Lord gently rebuked me this morning.  I was in my time of prayer and he gave me his thoughts on my thoughts and attitude lately.  I wasn’t really having an outward attitude; it was more like when your grumbling and complaining in your mind but you think it’s ok because you aren’t speaking it.  This photo is my journal entry of what God shared with me this morning.  I share this with you because I want to encourage anyone out there who is a mother or is thinking about becoming a mother some day or even for a father.  I typically wouldn’t put such a private entry for public eye, but I felt God say it would encourage others and I believe my assignment from God is to give encouragement to others, no matter what the cost.

So, the journal entry.  My husband and are in the process of sleep training our 5-month-old daughter, Madison Grace.  She loves physical touch so to get her to learn to self soothe and sleep with out being rocked, held, or nursed to sleep has been extremely taxing on my husband and I.  The first part of the sleep training required us get her to nap off of us and in her crib.  It went much better than we expected it to, we thought she would not sleep in her crib at all during the day.  Then we progressed to scheduled naps which requires her to sleep about every two hours.  To avoid making this a long explanation, the naps schedule is pretty rigid.  She is sleepy every two hours and now ready for bed by 7pm.  I don’t think I ever realized that babies this age needed a schedule or at least my baby would.  As a result of a successful transition to scheduled naps and crib sleeping, Maddie only sleeps well in her crib.  She really dislikes the car seat and being in the car and she cannot nap in public because she wants to see and experience everything going on around her. After attempting to skip her afternoon naps over this past weekend we saw it equated to a very cranky baby.  We realized while we are sleep training her, we are confusing her by trying to get her on “our schedule” over the weekend.  My husband and I talked on Sunday night and we said we need to devote this time to her new schedule and we agreed to be home for naps.  Home every two hours for naps and home every night by 6pm for bedtime.  This is so inconvenient I thought (there’s that grumbling and complaining in my heart).  I didn’t like the thought of living my life in two-hour increments, but I knew it was what we needed to do.  This morning as I went before the Lord, He spoke everything I wrote down in my journal (photo above). 

Why do I share all of this?  I share it because the attack there is against family.  The enemy hates family and I know he hates ours.  We are a family living for Jesus and the enemy will get in and cause discord and division any way he can.  I prayed yesterday asking the Lord to reveal any agreements I made recently towards Madison because I was having a hard day yesterday getting her to nap and I believe this journal entry was Him sharing that with me.  I made an agreement in my heart that Madison’s new schedule inconveniences me.  As I am writing this she is currently crying and yelling and the thought even tries to come in at this very moment.  Thoughts like “she is in the way of what I am trying to do.”  It’s a lie.  As you are reading this – clearly I was able to get this written and posted.  The enemy wants me to make these agreements so I can be overwhelmed and stressed out and even one day speak them out to her and causing her harm.  Now I am not condemning other parents or myself for having these thoughts and attitudes.  I  love Madison more than anything in the world.  I would do anything for her.  But is this time frustrating? Yes! Does God understand that we become weary, overwhelmed and frustrated as parents?  Absolutely.  Raising a child takes WORK.  But to believe that to have a child is not a blessing and an inconvenience to you or a money-sucker or the end to your social life is not true at all.  And that is what I want to emphasize because I believe that was God’s point to me this morning.  

So if you are a parent, currently expecting, or will be soon or one day in the future and you are in the middle or sleep training like me or teething, or a sick baby or even a back talking teenager, remember your child adds to your life and to your family mission. Another great reminder I tell myself these days is that children are a temporary assignment and one day when Madison is grown up and moved out I will wish I would stare at her beautiful  little face, napping peacefully in the middle of my Saturday. 

Love to you all,

A grateful Mama