Sometimes when you are a mama, you realize someone is slipping through the cracks. Usually it’s the teenagers. You suddenly notice a “pulling away” or a lack of trust developing. But, in this case, it is my little fellow, Daniel. You see, he is kinda a loner kid. He is happy to play outside by himself, or with his toys on the floor, and sometimes when there are two babies needing something, and the older children need help with their school, the one in between those stages can get lost in the shuffle.
But, in spite of the fact that he seems perfectly content, his behavior tells otherwise.
He is mischievous.
He gets into things.
He picks on people on occasion (randomly hitting someone or hollering for no apparent reason).
But there is a reason, and this mama cannot choose to ignore it any longer.
At first, I thought he needed more consistent discipline for those behaviors – and that was partially true, so I made a very clear “if-then” chart to follow. And yes, I saw some improvements. But this morning, rather using the usual methods, I simply had him come sit by me and get cuddled. At first, he was angry- sitting by me was restricting his freedom, and though he is barely three, he is not dumb. But after a couple of minutes, he settled down into me. He leaned into me.
Eventually he relaxed his little body and said, “Mommy, I like you.” And of course, my heart melted. Because I sure like this little guy, but I have been so busy chasing the problems, and the babies, and the housework, and the homeschooling, that I forgot to let him know it.
So, if you see less of me online, in church (oh, we’ll be there, but perhaps sitting alone near the back, cuddling), and anywhere else, you can assume I am with my boy, making sure that I capture his heart.
My prayers about this son’s needs were answered through reading another mom’s blog post: http://sarahmae.com/2012/10/leaving-the-99-for-my-one-what-i-know-now-fresh-blog-start-day-11/
