Marriage is hard.
Parenting is hard.
Being a good daughter, sister and friend can be hard.
Well, that about sums it up....jokes!
Rewind about 10 plus years. My marriage was rough. Really rough. There was no infidelity or mistrust. (My husband has always had the "gift" of honesty, albeit too much honesty sometimes.) It was just plain rough. And I tried everything. I mean, I'm a pretty smart girl. I was a Navy wife and made it through plenty of deployments. Even at 19 I was independent and resourceful. I did not have a college degree but I had worked hard to make good money to help support my family. I didn't need help from anyone...or so I thought.
- I tried to be the perfect wife.
- I tried to stand my ground and be stubborn and independent.
- I tried to involve my husband in every aspect of the kids' lives.
- When he became addicted to video games I tried to let him do "his thing" and the kids and I did "our thing". I don't know why. Maybe to show him what he was missing out on?
- In the end, it all failed.
I can honestly say it was not until I 100% gave my marriage to God, surrendered it ALL to Jesus that night on my knees in my bedroom closet, that things starting turning around.
Rewind about 5 years. God gave us a beautiful, precious miracle through adoption. His name was Ethan. He.was.special! He was loving, joyful and affectionate. He was also stubborn, feisty and the most strong willed little man I had EVER met. Prior to Ethan, my husband and I thought we had this parenting thing down. I mean, we were seriously experts! We would look at other parents and wonder why in the world they didn't just get control over their kids. Give them a spanking! Give them a talking to! What in the world was wrong with these people?! (Bahahahaha, joke's on us!)
- I tried being consistent. Boy, did I try.
- I tried being understanding and compassionate.
- I tried disciplining even more regularly than I did before.
- I read so many parenting books.
Again, it wasn't until I asked God for wisdom that I learned how to truly reach Ethan. I can't even say He gave me one specific parenting method. He just gave me patience and wisdom on a daily basis so I could be a better mama to my baby.
Here's the thing y'all...we were not created to do it all on our own. God did not put us on this earth to see what a perfect wife we could be or to test our supermom strength. You know how they say it takes a village? Well, it certainly does. And I have learned that the head of my village has to be Jesus. Invite Him into every relationship in your life.
Inviting God into your relationships
takes the pressure off of you.
He WANTS us to NEED Him!
"Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not be faint." ~Isaiah 40:31
To read more about my writings on marriage, mommyhood, adoption (or even if you just need a laugh) click one of the labels on the right hand side of my blog page. Two years is a long time and I have so much to update you all on so I will do that in time. And my pictures are all so old but I don't have the heart (or energy if I'm being totally honest) to change them yet. Just getting back into the swing of things.
Until next time...
~Jewels*
