Get in the picture MOM! Yes, YOU!

Get in the picture MOM!  Yes!  YOU!

{and other great advice}

The day my daughter came up to me and said, “Mom, are you going to have any time for me to cuddle with you today?  I really hope you don’t have to work all day.” Yeah, that was not awesome.  Working from home is a wonderful thing, but it has its drawbacks during busy times.  The work is always right there, and I often feel anxious if it is left unattended for a while.  However, I had to think about how the growing up years are when we have the privilege and opportunity to teach our children everything that will help them along the path of life.  The trouble is, most of what we teach them is by our actions and example.

My actions.  My example.

In the moment described above, I had a big wake up call to cut back on the amount of work my business takes on.  Sure our family was and is in need of those funds for our big move and the loss of income from my husbands job due to his moving positions at work.   But it really made me evaluate the effect my work actions had on our family.   We can find so many examples in our lives where our kids can teach us if we pay attention.

Do you kids love to be in pictures?  Have they asked to take a picture with you?  I know most women in my own life often fuss, protest or flat out refuse to let someone take their picture.  Now, you might be thinking this isn’t nearly as important of an example as my daughter letting me know she wasn’t getting enough time from me.  But it IS just as important!!!  When mom happily gets into pictures with her family and friends, it teaches her kids by example to not only be happy with ourselves but also to treasure our relationships and moments in life.

Some things I’d like my boys and girl to be when they are adults:

Be faithful and service oriented in church.

Be happy with their body image.

Be comfortable with themselves.

Be comfortable in a group of strangers.

Be sensitive to the feelings and needs of those around them.

Be inquisitive and adventurous.

Be awesome parents who play with their kids, lead them, love them and discipline them.

Be hard workers.

Be close to family members.

Be joyful.

Getting into pictures certainly won’t magically make all those things happen.  Writing down a list of things you would like your children to be.  Examine changes you can make to set the tone in your own life for them to learn from your example.

So moms, get in those pictures!  Embrace the not so perfect you that you are.  Let’s teach our kids that people aren’t perfect, and that is OK.   We’d love for you to share your pictures of you with your kids in the blog comments, on our Facebook post and or on Twitter!  Let’s see you with your cuties!

Check out this awesome tweet from our reader Mary!!

@EverydayCreativ picture of me with my gang pic.twitter.com/oHpld94m4f

— Mary Lee (@sunkistone) August 29, 2014