When I quit my full-time job to become a full-time mom and a part-time marketing communications consultant and insurance agent, it felt like I was liberated from the steely corporate world into a world where I can do whatever I want and be with those who matter most to me. Yes, I gave up my career to be with my family… not without the elders shaking their heads at me. I followed my heart and took the plunge nevertheless.
Giving up my career isn’t the end of life. I still get to challenge my gray matter with consultancy work and with agency work. To top it all off, I constantly have to come up with creative ways to rear my daughter. Ahhhh, my daughter! She’s my greatest challenge. She’s my greatest motivation. Now, that’s the story I want to share.
Not having to be at the office at 8am means more time with my husband and daughter, more time to do stuff with them and make stuff for them. Don’t get me wrong, I’m no Martha Stewart or Betty Crocker but I sure have a knack for crafts and cookery. These are things I enjoy doing for my husband and my daughter. And, oh what a compliment it is to see their faces full of pleasure and enjoyment.
My daughter’s infancy and toddler years were a breeze. She’s more active than most but not all that much trouble. Come year 3, things started to go haywire. Nobody told me that the Terrible Twos extended way beyond the 2nd year. She’d talk off her head for hours, run around like crazy and reason like a teenager. More so, when she started schooling. I cannot help but feel like I’m the most inadequate parent around. Like I do not deserve the honor of being given a child to raise. There are times I thought maybe my daughter would’ve been better off having someone else for a mother.
A child is like Jello. Pure, simple and could be molded into whatever you want. It is delicately flavored and should be handled carefully. Once molded, it is difficult to change its shape. You have to melt it again and re-mold it. People want Jello different ways, mixed with fruit, drizzled with syrup, mixed with milk and so many other ways. The simplicity is gone. A well-made Jello, stands on its own… mixes with others but holds its own shape. It jiggles but it keeps its shape. Such is a well-raised child.
Raising my child with all the different influences around us is a challenge. It is a challenge to enforce rules without being regarded as a witch… I was, by the way, called a witch by my sisters when we were growing up. I have to be firm without being stifling. There are times when I felt like all I do is nag. No to this, no to that. But, what’s a parent to do? When a little child challenges you, what should you do? Funny, and childish, but you count to ten. :o) Then mentally compose your next statement. Be careful of what you say or you might regret it. A child’s mind is a recordable instrument. They seldom forget.
My daughter and I share happy times. Lots of them… cuddling on the bed, watching cartoons together, driving around, food trips in UP, working on jigsaw puzzles, nuzzling cheeks and noses, taking baths, walking the dog, doing homework, coloring her books, reading, doing crossword puzzles… oh, how precious these moments are. There’s more to come, I am sure. My child is a happy child. I sure hope she thinks I’m a happy mom too.
I love being a mom. But sometimes our jobs as parents are made difficult by the influences around us. That’s why we take extra care in choosing our caregivers, the school we take our children to, the TV shows we let them watch etc.. We do it now while we still can. But, what about the time when we no longer have control over these influences. We work hard now so that when that time comes, our children are able to decide for themselves what influences to welcome and what influences to shun. That’s our job… to prepare them for the future.
Amidst the contradicting forces and varied influences, I will stand steadfast in my determination to rear my daughter and mold her into the best that she can be. I shall not yield to the hurdles strewn my way. I might be an unyielding mom, but I am also most definitely a loving, caring and nurturing mom. It’s a tough job being a parent, but raising a child and seeing her through successes and failures could well be worth more than anything else in this world.
Giving up my career isn’t the end of life. I still get to challenge my gray matter with consultancy work and with agency work. To top it all off, I constantly have to come up with creative ways to rear my daughter. Ahhhh, my daughter! She’s my greatest challenge. She’s my greatest motivation. Now, that’s the story I want to share.
Not having to be at the office at 8am means more time with my husband and daughter, more time to do stuff with them and make stuff for them. Don’t get me wrong, I’m no Martha Stewart or Betty Crocker but I sure have a knack for crafts and cookery. These are things I enjoy doing for my husband and my daughter. And, oh what a compliment it is to see their faces full of pleasure and enjoyment.
My daughter’s infancy and toddler years were a breeze. She’s more active than most but not all that much trouble. Come year 3, things started to go haywire. Nobody told me that the Terrible Twos extended way beyond the 2nd year. She’d talk off her head for hours, run around like crazy and reason like a teenager. More so, when she started schooling. I cannot help but feel like I’m the most inadequate parent around. Like I do not deserve the honor of being given a child to raise. There are times I thought maybe my daughter would’ve been better off having someone else for a mother.
A child is like Jello. Pure, simple and could be molded into whatever you want. It is delicately flavored and should be handled carefully. Once molded, it is difficult to change its shape. You have to melt it again and re-mold it. People want Jello different ways, mixed with fruit, drizzled with syrup, mixed with milk and so many other ways. The simplicity is gone. A well-made Jello, stands on its own… mixes with others but holds its own shape. It jiggles but it keeps its shape. Such is a well-raised child.
Raising my child with all the different influences around us is a challenge. It is a challenge to enforce rules without being regarded as a witch… I was, by the way, called a witch by my sisters when we were growing up. I have to be firm without being stifling. There are times when I felt like all I do is nag. No to this, no to that. But, what’s a parent to do? When a little child challenges you, what should you do? Funny, and childish, but you count to ten. :o) Then mentally compose your next statement. Be careful of what you say or you might regret it. A child’s mind is a recordable instrument. They seldom forget.
My daughter and I share happy times. Lots of them… cuddling on the bed, watching cartoons together, driving around, food trips in UP, working on jigsaw puzzles, nuzzling cheeks and noses, taking baths, walking the dog, doing homework, coloring her books, reading, doing crossword puzzles… oh, how precious these moments are. There’s more to come, I am sure. My child is a happy child. I sure hope she thinks I’m a happy mom too.
I love being a mom. But sometimes our jobs as parents are made difficult by the influences around us. That’s why we take extra care in choosing our caregivers, the school we take our children to, the TV shows we let them watch etc.. We do it now while we still can. But, what about the time when we no longer have control over these influences. We work hard now so that when that time comes, our children are able to decide for themselves what influences to welcome and what influences to shun. That’s our job… to prepare them for the future.
Amidst the contradicting forces and varied influences, I will stand steadfast in my determination to rear my daughter and mold her into the best that she can be. I shall not yield to the hurdles strewn my way. I might be an unyielding mom, but I am also most definitely a loving, caring and nurturing mom. It’s a tough job being a parent, but raising a child and seeing her through successes and failures could well be worth more than anything else in this world.
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