Lessons from the Littles

It’s summertime. And my kids still go to daycare. Judge me if you must. Trust me, I’ve been judged. But my kids thrive on routine, and I thrive on sanity. We’ve got a whole slough of recent renovations, and many days, I still go to school. (Spoiler Alert: Teachers do NOT necessarily spend the whole summer basking in the glorious sunlight with mimosas and grapes and quiet time.)

But today we played hooky. There was a relative monsoon outside, and it was just the kind of day that calls for staying in your pjs, catching up on the DVR (even if that is the last 17 episodes of Imagination Movers and Yo Gabba Gabba), and playing with trucks. So that’s exactly what we did.

I so enjoyed getting the day with my sweet boys and watching them interact with each other and converse about important things. (For example, “You sit right there and watch me run around. Then give me a high five.” Oddly enough, this served as genuine amusement for the better part of about 30 minutes, but I digress…)

As I watched my sweet boys today, I realized that I learned some life lessons. And so here, straight from my 4 and 2 year olds, are some tidbits I thought we all might find useful.

With Dominic, we have reached the glorious show off stage. This means that about 3,492 times in a day, I hear, “Watch it, Momma!” Now, he says this as an angry New Yorker would say something similar to one with whom he collides in the street, but he means he has got something important to show. The funny thing is, he will not proceed until I say, “Show me, Bud!” And then of course, I burst with excitement for the small jump or silly facial expression he may have made. Lesson Number One. We all need to feel as if someone important is watching us. When we are working for something, towards something, at something, we need to know that there will be an acknowledgement of our hard work. The thing to consider is, for whom are you working? From where is your satisfaction and acknowledgement coming? God gives us each unique gifts, and He longs for us to look up at Him and say, “Watch it!” while we put those talents to good use.

Now Vaughn, in so many ways, is the cliché older child. His sense of leadership and nurturing are really coming to light, and he makes me so proud. Dominic had a toy that he had been trying to work for quite some time. He would come to me and whine about it and after doing it and showing him how to do it several times, I kindly explained to him that he needed to be a problem solver and do it himself. He sat there whining, “I cannnnnn’ttttt” for a few minutes until Vaughn– in all of his four year old wisdom– got down, put his hand on his little brother’s shoulder, showed him one more time, and said, “You are strong. You do it, Dominic.” And just like that, sweet Nic mustered his two year old courage and made the car shoot out just as it was designed to do. Magic. Lesson Number Two. When times are tough, when we are discouraged, we all need someone to get down on our level and remind us that we can do this. We got it. We are strong. Remember to allow yourself to be helped, to be encouraged. It is important to your success.

There are lessons lurking in every day moments. In life, there are times when we NEED an example and times when we should BE an example. Be sensitive to the times when you can be either. You never know the difference something simple can make to someone, the influence you might have in another’s life…