Talk about an easy read! I think I finished this book in a matter of hours! Seriously. It has 20 chapters, but the longest chapter is no more than 6 pages long. If you haven’t read a parenting book in a while and need a place to start I would suggest this one! Even if you only have five minutes of quiet…that’s at least one chapter down. Even though the chapters are short they are straight and to the point and will leave you thinking and adjusting.
I first learned of this book through a friend, Jordan. You can find her blog here. She has referenced some of the author’s other articles in her postings in the past and I always found myself deeply challenged by them. The author, Rachel, has five children herself, all under the age of five. I’m not exactly sure what I thought the book would be about, but I don’t think it was exactly what I thought it was going to be. I still loved it all the same.
She had me in the first paragraph of the first chapter:
If there is anything I have learned in the course of my fast and furious mothering journey, it is that there is only one thing in my entire life that must be organized. The kids can be running like a bunch of banshees through a house that appears to be at the bottom of a toaster, and yet, if organization and order can still be found in my attitude, we are doing well. But if my attitude falters even in the midst of external order, so does everything else.
Yes, my attitude is always my nemesis.
Some other little tidbits:
As you deal with your children, deal with yourself always and first. This is what it looks like, and feels like, to walk as a mother with God.
It is no abstract thing-the state of your heart is the state of your home. You cannot harbor resentment secretly toward your children and expect their hearts to be submissive and tender. You cannot be greedy with your time and expect them to share their toys. And perhaps most importantly, you cannot resist your opportunities to be corrected by God and expect them to receive correction from you.
While your children are little, cultivate an attitude of sacrifice. Sacrifice your peace for their fun.
Fat souls are better than clean floors……Most of the time the children do not know that what they are doing is overwhelming. This is because they do not forget that they are individuals. Now I am not saying that there are not times when I just say, “Sorry kids, not a good time for helpers.” I do plenty of that. It is just that a whole lot of time it is a fine time for helpers—even a good time for them, if I am willing to get the grace for it.
If you want some quality “me time,” make a date with your husband. Do something special with your children. These people are you. Your identity is supposed to be intertwined—that is the way God wrote the story, and it is the way He intends us to read it.
She also shares some great examples on how to teach the children and has great metaphors throughout the book. Some that I never would have thought of.
Setting behaviors into stories is a great way to communicate with your little people. Got a boy hitting a sister? Tell him about a brave knight who went out to fight the dragon but started hitting the princess instead. Give the children a chance to get outside themselves and see their behavior as it plays out in a story. It often turns out that they know exactly the right thing to do.
And again, another book pointing to the importance on focusing on the heart.
It is important to stick to principles, teach principles, and then sort out the details in the light of them. You need to look at what you think is happening in hearts and address that.
I could go on and on. There were so many good things in this book! Just one more though…
Joy is not giddy. It is not an emotional rush—it is what happens when you accept your lot and rejoice in your toil. So rejoice in your children. Look them in the eyes and give thanks. You will not even remember the work of all this planting when the harvest of joy overwhelms you.
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