"I Don't Have Enough Time."

Tonight, I was playing with my oldest child and realized that bedtime was quickly creeping upon us. I knew what was going to happen when I said, "It's time for bed." It was going to be tears and a meltdown... like usual. *cue the eyeroll*. Immediately I felt my guard go up. "I don't have time for this," I thought to myself before I even uttered the words. But why not?

Why don't I have the time to sit with my child in their emotions and try to understand them? What else am I doing right now that's more important than showing patience and helping them process how they feel? The answer is... I do have the time, and nothing else is more important than this moment right now. 

You see, the phrase "monkey see, monkey do" is very much true when it comes to raising children. Everything you do, they see, and then they do too. They way they talk to their baby dolls is the way they hear you speak to them. The way they speak to their friends is the way they see you speak to their siblings. 

It's so easy to roll your eyes and say "my child's smarter than that, they should understand!" But, should they? Have you ever taken the time to show them what having patience looks like? Have you ever modeled how you expect them to respond? Because modeling it is the best way to teach them. 

Tonight I flipped the script and the moment I felt that dreadful guard come up, I said "No, I do have time. My youngest is asleep already, my family doesn't need their medicine yet, there is nothing eles in this moment that's more important than helping them work through their feelings." It's easy to forget they're still children. They're still learning, no matter how old they are. 

I listened to what was said to me. I got to the root of the problem and helped them feel better. I listened when I was asked, "will you please lay down with me tonight?" I explained what was important that needed to be taken care of now and then promised I'd return. I did exactly what I said I would do, came back and snuggled, and I'm sure that little moment of connection, the one that took me 10 minutes out of my night is something in the future that will mean all the world to them when they're older. They will look back and remember, "my parents took the time to be with me, to listen to me and to help me." And that is so, so much more important than anything else I could have done in that moment.