Editors Note: I read this post on Jill’s blog and could literally see myself in her shoes.  It encouraged me and humbled me, I hope it will do the same for you.

One of the most difficult things for me about motherhood is the redundancy. And I am not even talking about the Groundhog Day existence that can drive you batty. Wake up, feed kids, dress kids, fix lunch, pick up messes, feed dinner, put to bed, clean up, collapse. I am actually referring to the fact that I often feel like I am a broken record that is skipping on the same phrases over and over and over. Don’t hit your sister, quit whining, I don’t like your tone of voice, why do I have to keep asking you to clean up, blah, blah, blah, blah. Do I sound like Charlie Brown’s teacher to them cause I certainly do to me.

Some days it feels like I am failing on every level because seriously how are we not making any progress in areas X, Y, Z. Or how come all the progress we made last week has completely gone by the wayside. And how come my kids aren’t perfect yet cause honestly, I have been at this thing for almost 6 years and shouldn’t they have it all figured out by now. Or at least shouldn’t we be moving on to more advanced parenting topics than just it isn’t polite to hit your sister for no apparent reason? Or how to flush the toilet 101.

Some days I lie in bed at night and think I must really be Charlie Brown’s teacher. Or maybe I speak in a tone only dogs can hear (except I briefly had a dog and he didn’t obey anything I told him either). I mean how is it possible I can say the same thing over and over day after day and no one is listening to me. And then I hear God whisper to me….”Exactly.” How frustrating and disheartening it must be for God. I only have 2 kids to ignore me and he has all of creation. Least of all me who he tries to hit over the head with a 2 x 4 on a regular basis to teach me to be more loving, more gentle, more patient, more kind. And he has been stuck on pause for 30-some years trying to get me to get past “Thou shall love your neighbor 101.”

Parenting is challenging as a human, but even more so as a Christian because if we really pay attention, we are reminded daily of how we are no more than overgrown children whining to our Father that “it isn’t fair, she got more than me” or “it was an accident” after we intentionally gossip about someone. All the things that frustrate me the most in my children are really just a clever way of God turning the mirror around back on me and showing me the myriad of ways that I sin and fall short every day. But usually I am too busy to listen and he too ends up sounding like Charlie Brown’s teacher in my ear. May I be as patient with my kids as he continues to be with me.

First published at The Diaper Diaries by Jill

Photo credit: ralaenin