I've been thinking a bit lately about how we tend to go in stages in parenting. When the kids were first born, they were definitely more mine than my husband's, in many ways. I fed them. I was with them. He played with them, but not as much as I wanted him to, although he was a great dad.
My youngest even played strange with him (and he was around a lot). She just wanted me, pure and simple.
Then they hit one, and could run and laugh and play, and they became Daddy's Little Girls. They'd go to me if they had a boo boo, but they'd play with Daddy. He was the fun one.
When Katie hit 2 she decided she preferred me again, and wouldn't let Daddy tuck her in. That was hard on all of us, but she grew out of that, too, and Daddy became the fun one again. She would wrestle with him, and sneak up on him to see if she could pinch him without him noticing, and things like that. I was still there for the daily things, like getting her dressed, and making her meals, and bathing her, and she always came to me with those types of concerns, but Daddy was her toy.
That isn't to say he didn't discipline the girls; just that when they were little, let's say up to about 10, they preferred him to me when it came to having fun. They preferred me to him when it came to talking things over, but in general they liked him.
Then they hit puberty, and everything changed. So much of what Keith had done with them was physical: wrestling, hugging, tickling. All of a sudden he had a weird time tickling Becca, and he stopped. And we're still trying to find that happy medium again. We're just renegotiating his relationship with them, because it is hard when they're not little girls anymore.
Sometimes I get frustrated because I expect him to be like me, but I have to remember that first year of their lives, when he didn't play with them quite as much. He was still trying to figure out where they fit in, and they needed me. I think we're going through that again. He feels like he's on the sidelines, because they have all these "girl issues", and their relationship needs a kickstart. But it will get one; I just have to be patient with all of them.
If you're wondering why you're husband doesn't play with the kids more, ask yourself: could it just be a stage? Or what if one of your children is preferring you to him right now, and it's really wearing on you? Again, it could be just a fleeting stage. Katie only played strange for a few weeks. She only made me put her to bed for a little while. And it usually coincided with something big in her life, like she was learning to walk or learning to use the potty. Once these stresses were over she was okay again.
It's not just men who have ebbs and flows, too. I have had periods in my parenting when I felt as if I preferred one girl over the other, and it always sent me through heaps of guilt. But when I look back, I can see that one was going through a difficult transition time, and was naturally more difficult, or moody, or stubborn. And it's not as if it's always the same girl, either. Quite often I'll feel naturally close to one of them for a year or so, and then it will flip. I try not to show favouritism, and it's not as if I love one more, it's just that there may be one that I find it easier to be with. As time has gone on, though, I find that it's more because of developmental stages than it is with them as people. I really do enjoy who they're becoming.
Looking back on my life I can see years when I've had more energy as a parent, and years when I haven't. I can see years when I've been closer to God, and years when I've been farther. I think this is natural. Perhaps if we kept that view of life in mind--that it's rarely a straight line, but more of a series of hills--we'd be easier on ourselves, on our kids, and on our mates. Let's keep the long term in mind. In the long term, if we're consistent parents, if we love our kids, and if we nurture them, they're going to turn out well, most likely. They will be our friends when they are older. They will follow God. But in the short term we may feel like failures with one particular child, or we may resent our spouse because he's not as involved anymore, or we may feel as if we are doing a bad job.
I think families are more flexible and forgiving than we give them credit for. When your children look back, sure they may remember that one time you totally lost your temper and said something mean. But they'll also remember all the great times you had, and that will be their primary memory. In the long run, two years that Keith spends renegotiating his relationship with them in these tumultuous years, or several years that I spend trying to get out of a self-imposed wildnerness, won't matter so much. It's the collection of memories that are important, not each individual one.
So remember those hills and valleys. It's okay if you're in a valley; a hill is up ahead. And it will get better. Just keep praying!
 Labels: marriage, parenting, teenagers |
Stumble It!
I was just thinking about this very subject yesterday. We have 6 children. Our oldest two are teen girls ages 14 and 15. We had a year of growing with out 15 y/o last year. She is becoming a beautiful woman of God. In this process, she and I have become closer and share openly with each other.
The thought came that I need to be very mindful of my relationship with our 14 year old. She is coming into a time that she needs more of my discipleship too and that I can't, nor do I desire to neglect my time with her.
I know that it'll be a balancing act, but I also know that since I am their mother, God has equipped me with everything that is needed.