Day 24 – Thankful for Second Chances in Parenting
Tonight was rough, y’all. I didn’t parent very well and my boy cried a couple of times. It’s days like this that I feel like I don’t know what I’m doing. But, then I get an “I love you” at bedtime and I’m thankful for second chances in parenting.
My boy is known throughout our little town for his smile. He has an award winning smile with his little baby teeth and the gap between his top two teeth. He gets compliments everywhere we go on that smile and I am asked on a daily basis if he smiles like this all the time. My answer is almost always “yes, he wakes up with that smile on his face” because honestly, he does. My boy loves life and loves our little family.
But sometimes, things go wrong at home.
Sometimes thing go wrong at the Y after school, but that’s another story.
Tonight, things went wrong at home and I disappointed my boy over and over.
I talked yesterday about my workaholic love of my 2.5 jobs, right? Well, work got in the way of my being a good parent tonight. I had some extra work that I needed to get done (that honestly could have waited, but I wasn’t letting it wait) and I let that interfere with my time with the family.
It started as soon as we got home and I went straight to the computer. I needed to get some CL work done and I tried to send my boy off to play by himself. His best friend from across the street (who moved to Florida last year) is home visiting and he was bugging me to call or text their mom to see if he could play. Only the mom had already told us that the kids were in the back field with their dad and she would call him, but she couldn’t guarantee that he would come up for the kids to play. He was stressing over seeing his friend and bugging me over and over. There was nothing I could do so I just kept working while he went from the window to the door until it got too dark for him to see.
Then it was time for dinner (and this was my only score as a parent) and Howard is sick so I took Benjamin out for pizza at his favorite buffet restaurant. I even gave him play money to play games after he ate his dinner. Life was good for a few minutes while we were there.
We came home and he went to his room, but then he came out crying because he wanted to play with his friend and he wanted to find a missing stuffed animal that we lost a few weeks ago. I held him for a second while he cried and Howard found the “brother” to the missing animal. Benjamin eventually calmed down and took a bath. He felt a little better after his shower and bath and then it was time for bed.
As I was tucking him into bed, he said “night night Mommy, I love you” and I knew all was forgiven. I don’t know what I would do without second chances in parenting because I make these same mistakes over and over almost on a daily basis. I guess at least I didn’t yell tonight so that’s a good thing…
So, today I’m thankful for second chances in parenting and hopefully I can continue to learn from my mistakes and do just a little better next time.
Join me on my journey to write 30 days of thankfulness in the month of November for NaBloPoMo and follow my hashtag ā #CrazyThankful ā to find out what Iām thankful for this month and all year long!
Parenting is so hard! I am constantly second guessing how I react and interact with different situations. I think we are all lucky that kids are so forgiving!
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Oh this totally hit home for me. No one really ever told me how hard a child with special needs would be to raise (mine is high functioning ASD/SPD). Being a young parent I’m still learning how to navigate the adult world and some days are just so stressful that I don’t realize how many times I’ve said “hold on, wait, give mommy a minute” and before I know it it’s bedtime and I have only done work. I’m so lucky to have a kid that tells me he loves me every night and lately I’ve been trying to be better for him.
ashleigh recently posted..Spicy Deviled Eggs Perfect Holiday Appetizer
Parenting is challenging our kids didn’t come with a “how to” book.
nicole recently posted..Sunburst Mirrors Painted metallic Gold!
Parenting is difficult at times. You always wonder if you’re doing the right thing. You just have to try your best. I remember when my son used to throw tantrums. He would cry and cry until I gave in. When I finally decided to stop giving in, and just kept my cool and did what I said I was going to do if he kept it up…he finally stopped with the tantrums. It was so hard to do. I even cried myself. What a job…being a parent.
Every day can certainly be challenging but also a gift. I know that I like to work on things when I get them and not wait either.
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I love how wonderful and forgiving kids are. It makes such a difference!
Debra recently posted..Peppermint Cake Muddy Buddies
It’s a hard gig, there’s no doubt about it. We do the best we can, and it sounds like you learned a little something about what’s most important to you that day.
Liz Mays recently posted..Christmas Fun in Concord North Carolina
Mama said there’d be days like this! I’m so grateful my children are so quick to forgive also. I certainly am nowhere near perfect.
Parenting is never easy but our children’s resilience and love is astonishing. Every day we get to start over fresh.
Just because your child cries doesn’t mean you’re a bad parent. It’s OK for him to be upset, it just shows his compassion for his friend.
Scott recently posted..Mega Giveaway Day 14 ā RC Quad Copter
I am trying to figure out why you thought you were a bad parent–because you didn’t jump to go take him to his friend? That is not bad parenting in my opinion–maybe the reason you didn’t wasn’t a good one–but then kids do have to learn that not everything in life goes their way.
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Parenting is not an easy job, but it is very rewarding.
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Parenting can be hard at times but I make sure they learn right from wrong.
Nikka Shae recently posted..Walk A Mile In Style With UKIES
parenting can be hard at times but it sure is better than not ever having kids to begin with I don’t know what I would do without my daughter – so thankful for her
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Some days are so tough. I find comfort in knowing that tomorrow is a new day and a fresh start.
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He sounds like an amazing little boy and you like a great mom. I am going through the 3’s with my daughter and it gets so hard sometimes but then she melts me with her little smile and all is forgotten.
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Parenting can be so hard, we all have those times! But isn’t is so nice when they are sweet and say those “I lub yous” at the end of the day!
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