Raising Kids for Eternity - The Baby Years

Every day I think about how I'm preparing my children for eternity, and though I know I haven't written in a very long while, it isn't for lack of ideas, but rather for lack of time.

Our littlest girl, Annie (9 months today), is a very darling loving child - with me.  She loves me and I love her.  She gives me very little grief and is seemingly always content.  However, this little girl morphs into some strange beast when I'm not with her.  Isaac can bring her some comfort and Susie does her best to soothe her when she's upset.  But outside of those two, she finds no solace.  She'll scream her head off when someone else picks her up, but as soon as she's in my arms, everything is right in the world, all screaming ceases and she'll smile at her former "abductor."  I used to feel so badly about her reaction.  She made other adults feel terrible and I got some not so nice looks from others who believed that babies should be a lot more adaptable than Annie is.

Thankfully, my mother continually allayed my worry and reminded me that God created babies this way.  They are SUPPOSED to bond with their mothers.  Annie is a very jovial child when she is with me, and there is no other place she wants to be.  I've decided not only to accept it, but also to embrace her behavior.  In a country where we place such high value on freedom and independence, we are all to quick to forget our need for God.  Not that I am God, but in Annie's world, she is forming an opinion of a loving God based upon my love and care for her.  Just as she longs to be with me and find joy interacting with me, I pray that as she grows she forms an even greater attachment with God.  I want her to run to Him and to long to be with Him, and I even want her to be unhappy when she steps out of His Will.  Somehow, I get the idea that the way Annie feels towards me now, is very similar to how we should feel towards God.  Heaven will eventually be the fulfillment of longing to walk with God and be with Him physically each and every day (not that we aren't now, but it is much more difficult on earth than it will be in Heaven).

So, to all those people who feel that Annie is a problem child who seemingly can't get enough of her mother, I am sorry you feel that way.  But it is true. She always wants to be with me, and it is my hope and prayer that I am setting her up to feel the same way about God.


(On another note - I have become quite tired because she wakes up every 3 hours at night for a feeding.  So I went to my go to doctor online, Doctor Sears, to read up on what he has to say.  I'm not sure if this man is a Christian, but I suspect that he may be.  Here is a WONDERFUL article about babies and sleeping at night.  http://www.askdrsears.com/topics/sleep-problems/8-infant-sleep-facts-every-parent-should-know  The gist of what he says is that babies need parenting, even in the night.  And we shouldn't expect them to sleep through the entire night as the movement in the 70's seems to suggest they should.  God didn't design babies that way and it is more than okay to rock them to sleep, to nurse them when they're hungry, and to generally care for them and love them even through the night.  He emphasizes that you need to set them up for success, but until a child is 1-2 years old, expecting them to sleep all night is unrealistic and perhaps not even safe.)

I find it strange that society continually tries to minimize the role of a mother.  Maybe we need a lot more moms putting their kids first - teaching them, loving them, caring for them, and disciplining them with love.  I'll be the first to admit, working while my children were young is perhaps one of the biggest mistakes I ever made.  I may not be perfect, but my children need me.  Thankfully, I have a husband who supports my desire to stay at home and focus on our children.  There is no way I could do it without him.  Even though society continually slams traditional roles within the family as well as mothers who stay at home to care for the children and the home, we have found that as we embrace more traditional roles, our lives have never been happier or more fulfilling.  Could it be that perhaps God designed families to work this way?  And that He designed women for motherhood and men for fatherhood?  Maybe He gave women an extra dose of patience and sensitivity to deal with the every day demands of raising children and men the strength and endurance to work outside of the home on a farm, in the business world, or the military?  Maybe, just maybe, God made us different for different purposes.  I know there is no one size fits all, but we'd be wise to consider how we were designed before we jump on society's bandwagon.