Thursday, June 26, 2008

Mom's Off Duty - The Final Report

Yes, this is the final report. Mom's Off Duty has been cut short by one day. And we're going right into Mom's Having a Party!

Not sure if the kids secretly placed a call to Grandma for help, but she has taken them for a long weekend at her house. (I'm kidding - I know they didn't call her. It's just this weekend was the only time which would work out for her to take them, unless she waited until August. And since you've been reading about how great my kids are, you can understand why she didn't want to wait that long. *grin*)

So I've had a week of no housework, and now I have a long weekend of no one calling me Mom. Yep, hubby and I are going to party. *wink*

But, about today - the final day of Boot Camp for my kids. I'm telling you, I was totally blessed. As they have been all week, they got right into their morning chores - mostly taking care of dishes. And today they also took care of laundry.
That was all great, but it was our afternoon which really pleased me. The work was all done and I suggested taking a walk. Elizabeth and Matthew were interested, (Most likely because I said we could walk to Seven-Eleven and get an ice cream treat. Elizabeth will do anything for ice cream.) but Joshua was not.
I said he could stay home if he wanted but I hoped he would come.
He said if he came, he wanted to bring his DS along to play with while he was walking.
I said, "No deal." I said I hoped he would come along, but he couldn't bring the DS.
We argued it out a bit and I simply said he needed to choose. Joshua, of course, thought I was being unreasonable and didn't understand why he couldn't bring the DS on our walk. I held my ground.
And, boy, was I ever glad.
Joshua decided to come with us, without the DS, and my heart delighted in watching him walk next to Elizabeth all the way to the store. They were talking and laughing and enjoying each other. I saw my two oldest children - who so often fight with each other - having a good time together. As I watched them I prayed for them, asking God to deepen their friendship and grow their love for one another.
I couldn't help but wonder, too, if the things they went through this week - in being responsible for things around the house - may have contributed to improving their relationship. From what I could see, they really did work together well. Sure, there were moments of bickering, times when one would complain that another wasn't helping enough. But over all, I got the sense they were in this thing together.
And I couldn't be happier.
Yes, it was a long and hot walk to the store, and I didn't even get ice cream, but it was the best walk I have taken in a very long time. We made a memory, the kids enjoyed a special treat, and I took tremendous delight in seeing the growing relationships between my kids.

So, this is how I see it:
My kids are able to actively participate in household responsibilities.
Their contribution seems to build their confidence, and they actually appear to enjoy the work. (We've even talked about how we'll continue, and they are agreeable. Not that I would have changed my mind if they didn't agree. LOL)
They are learning to work together.
I have confidence they will love each other when they're grown up, because they're showing signs of it now!

My kids are far from being perfect (just like their mom!!!) but they're wonderful to me. And because of what I have seen in them over the past four days, I am officially declaring my little Mom's Off Duty exercise a success.

Now it's time to party!

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12 comments:

Unknown said...

A definite success - congrats to everyone.

I think you should all get A+.

Enjoy your kid-free weekend.

luvmy4sons said...

Way to go! You have some really neat kiddos and they have a super great mom! Have some fun with hubby! (wink wink)

Wendi@EveryDayMiracles said...

Awesome 'Mom's off duty' posts! :)
I have read all of them and am now counting down the days till my boys are at an age where they can do some of the tasks which take up so many of my days...
I wanted to thank you for your kind, kind words on my blog. It meant so much to me! What a blessing to know that there are so many praying for me. Thank you!
~Wendi

ThreeGirlyGirls said...

Party hard with your man girl!! You totally deserve it! My hat is off to you for successfully allowing this!! =) It would've been EVERYTHING for me to keep my mouth shut and not do it for them!! I look foreword to trying some of these ideas with my girls. I'm seeing that they are old enough to start helping this momma out!

Anonymous said...

Isn't God grand? I'm so glad He gave you the inspiration and the fortitude to try this experiment. It was clearly what HE wanted your family to do this week. I love how He works in the smallest most mundane things.

2nd Cup of Coffee said...

Hi, 1st time here. This post is pretty inspiring ... and I have teenagers.

Gretchen said...

What an encouragement your "experiment" was to me. I'm so glad your kids not only blessed you, but were blessed themselves, as well. Too Cool!

Jackie said...

I'd say it was a definite success! And I don't doubt that the responsibility they shared helped to deepen their friendship. Funny how that works!

Hope you and the hubby have a fabulous weekend! :)

Anonymous said...

OK. Seriously. Do you have to make me cry in EVERY entry?? :)

So glad that things went well! I absolutely love your perspective and how the kids handeled things.

Many blessings-
Amanda

Susan Skitt said...

Way to go Mommy - training our kids isn't easy, but it's soooo worth it. I like too how you coordinated daily tasks with the Word of God. It all fits together :0

concerned parent said...

I need to organize some of this at my house it would do both of my kiddies good to learn how much mom does for them.
This has been a great learning lesson thanks for sharing it with us. You have great kids.

kreed said...

What an awesome idea and what great kids you have!