Three Truths for Mothers of Babies
Three Truths for Mothers of Babies
Mothering lately feels like the middle of a marathon. Maybe that’s because I am in the middle of it! My kids are now in the “middle” years. We have one in elementary school, one in middle school, and two in high school.
A few weeks ago, we were visiting an amusement park. As we all walked in, I noticed the stroller line. The one line where all of the parents with little kids were standing to enter the park. We laughed, my husband and I, because it felt good not to be in that line – but also, it was a stab of nostalgia because I do miss those little years.
That whole incident sparked something in me because I realized that I’m not ever going back to those days of strollers, diaper bags, and bottles. Although there are parts I miss, there are parts I’m glad are over.
The truth is we didn’t always know that time was so fleeting. In the middle of those years, it is hard and slow work. Not much growth is seen, but then time passes at the same speed as everything else and you find yourself on the other side of diapers.
Yes. There will be a time when you will have no more diapers.
But there are other truths as well. Other, beautiful truths, about the life you are living right now. So, I want to share with you three truths about mothering babies that you need right now. These are truths that are actually true about mothering at every stage, but especially right now as you mother in the quiet, hidden spaces.
Three Truths You Need Right Now
- Truth One: You might feel hidden, but you aren’t. God sees you in the midst of each late-night rocking session. Everytime you walk that worn path from your room to the baby’s room, everytime you see yourself all disheveled in the mirror because who has time for a shower? God sees it all. You are not really hidden in this season, even if it feels like you are.
- Truth Two: Mothering is your vocation, but not your calling. Hear me out. Motherhood is a work God has called us to do, but it is not the WHOLE of what you do. Keep mothering as an important part of your daily and weekly life, but don’t let it become your WHOLE daily life.
- Truth Three: Find something to do that is not mothering. You spend your days doing all of the things related to your child. It can consume you, but don’t let it. Invest in something that is art, or beauty, or even just gives you pleasure. Not something productive, but something personal to you.
The biggest truth is to live RIGHT NOW.
It isn’t that older kids are harder or easier. I think that older kids are more complex. The problems feel a little bit more like they matter now.
We can feel the pull to look back and to be sad about all of the steps and stages that we’ve passed. But we also feel the pull to look forward and the fact that they won’t always be here in the way that they are here right now.
Tweet ThisWhat feels hard but what is necessary, is to live in the right now. To enjoy the present without mourning or crying about what was and what will come. Motherhood is such a beautiful, glorious gift that the Lord has given to us in this season of our lives.