Family Work

waiting for mom

I remember a friend telling me how she sent her kids to her mom's for two weeks while she and her husband painted and freshened up the new place they bought.  Jealousy!  We were in the midst of our second big remodel when she mentioned that.  We've never even hired babysitters for an hour or two during these years we've been doing this.

Sometimes the kids complain.  But not very often.  They don't know any other way...except when they go to someone else's house and bedrooms have beds and toys in them and people relax and watch TV.  But they are rarely anywhere but here, so I can make myself believe they don't mind it, right? ;)

"Don't climb up the ladder, Lane!  I'll be down soon."

I just recently remembered a talk from a previous stake conference (LDS church meeting) where the man speaking looked back on his years of parenting and said that if he had it to do over he would do more work projects and less big vacations...as methods of family bonding.  He is a wealthy man, so I think they probably did take many trips.  What he was remembering with fondness was putting in their yard after they had a home built.  He had memories of planting trees and hard physical work.  Now it is warmly remembered when the kids and grand kids gather on that well-established lawn.  That is parenting advice I had never really heard before that moment.

Although I didn't ask for it specifically, I'm grateful we were blessed with this opportunity for us and for our kids.  I have come to the point of being extremely grateful we were not able to build the house we had been planning last year.  What we were blessed with is exactly what we needed.