To Practice What I Preach

I spend a lot of my day, I mean A LOT of my day trying to teach my children about gratitude. My threenager is in this phase where I can literally do nothing right. If I make him a sandwich he gets all caught up in the fact that it is peanut butter and jelly instead of honey. Or I pick out the wrong pair of underwear. Or I look at him wrong.

I am starting to just concede some daily things over to him. I let him pick out his clothes (except on Sundays. I refuse to take my child to church in warm-up pants). I give him more choices throughout the day. I try to fool him into believing he has some control (*cue evil laugh*).

In a lot of ways this has made my life easier. I have one less child to get dressed and to put shoes on. I have also noticed as I give him more control, he is more willing to help me with other things like emptying out the dishwasher and clearing off the table.

My two year old is....well....two. She's impossible to please.

Me: "What color sticker do you want for going pee-pee in the potty?"

Two year old: "Blue. Purple. Green."

She is super cute and funny, though, so she has that going for her.

My baby is, okay I will admit it, my favorite. I know! I know! Horrible mom alert!

Well, I guess she's not really my favorite, she is just in my favorite phase. That phase is "Easy to please." As long as her diaper is clean, her tummy is full and she can roam about freely, she is the happiest person on earth.

So, back to what I was saying before, I am trying to teach them to be grateful. Instead of complaining about the sandwich, maybe he should thank me for making him a sandwich at all. Maybe he should be grateful he gets to eat three good meals a day.

When big brother shares with the two year old, say "Thank you!" When mommy shares her delicious lunch with you, say "Thank you!" I feel I am pretty good about pounding the gratitude principle into their sweet little heads.

And then, it happened. I had just finished a workout with my husband and I was ready to take a nice warm shower and enjoy a smoothie together. I asked him to make it and hopped in the shower. The last few minutes were freezing and I was angry.

We live in a house that was built in the early 1900's and the water system is pretty touchy. The water pressure is significantly decreased if more than one water source is flowing. For example, if the sink in the kitchen is turned on at the same time as the sink in the bathroom, both flow at half the rate as is normal. Also, if any other faucet it turned on, all water, I repeat ALL water, is crazy cold.

So here I was waiting for the water to get warm again so I could end my shower on a high note, and it never got warmer. In a huff, I turned off the shower and quickly got dressed. I went to the kitchen and the smoothie still wasn't made. "What has he been doing this whole time?!" I thought.

He explained that the blender was dirty so he needed to wash it and then the bottom wouldn't screw back on, so he had to wrestle with that for a while and finally, by the time I was out of the shower and dressed he had managed to reassemble it. I expressed my annoyance and he looked completely defeated.

As soon as he left the room, I felt horrible. All day long I tell my children the importance of gratitude. I tell them how no matter what situation you find yourself in, if you can be grateful for what you do have, things don't seem as bleak. I spend a lot of my time preaching this principle, but in that moment I failed to practice my own advice. He was simply trying to serve me and I was so wrapped up in it not going my way that I forgot what was really important. I quickly apologized and told him that I was grateful for his service and especially for his desire to serve me.

About a year and a half ago my sister stated quite simply "Gratitude goes a long way." These words often play through my head. Gratitude can really make any situation better. It can brighten your day. It can soften your heart.

I will try even harder to keep an attitude of gratitude with me, especially within my home. My wonderful family serves me in so many different ways, and I know I can never say "Thank you!" too many times.

Thank you so much for reading and feel free to comment below and share what you are grateful for!

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