Something I Wish I Did: More Scripture Songs

Looking back, I wish I had found ways to play more music for my kids.  And specifically, I wish I had played songs based on verses from the Bible.  We did some of that, but due to some various technology-lacking factors, I mostly relied on CD's... and these often got scratched and lost.  We had one central CD player, and despite my efforts to purchase some additional players for the kids' rooms, the cords kept getting lost, batteries removed or depleted, etc.  All that to say, we didn't play as much music as I wish we had.

Kids brains are so amazing when they are young, and when I think of how many things my kids have memorized because they were set to song, I wish we had taken greater advantage of pumping more of God's Word into them at young ages.

The ones we did do, we loved.  Songs for Saplings and Hide 'Em in Your Heart were good.  But I know there were plenty we never listened to. 

Perhaps others could comment and share which music has been helpful for their families?

The mom's plight: multitasking

(Reprinted from franklyjournaling.blogspot.com, 11/22/09)

I read an article recently about multitasking. The author’s main point was that multitasking is not actually more efficient, much as we’d like to believe so, because in reality our brains can really only focus on one thing at a time. So when we think we are multitasking, we are actually switch-tasking, albeit very rapidly. But every time we switch tasks, different neurons in our brains have to fire up or fire down, so we actually lose small bits of time with every switch.

In addition to this alarming piece of information, the author also presented this nice tidbit: the more we multitask, the more our brains actually change shape physically… and it was insinuated that this change was not one for the better. Therefore, he very evenly and rationally proposed, we would be much benefited if we simply just did one thing at a time, focusing solely on it until its completion.

As I read this, alarm bells started going off in my head as I recognized the effects of this phenomenon in my own life. My thoughts/words were something like:

“DING! DING! That’s just what – Rayna, stop pushing him – my problem – Colsen you can’t put that on your face! – is when I – DING! DING! What? I mean when I multi – Shoot, Strider can you pull that off the stove before it boils over? – DING! Is that the microwave? Or the washing machine? What was I doing here in this room?”

Eventually, though, I had enough pieces of thoughts to finally string them together into one coherent conclusion: THANKS A LOT BUDDY. I believe your hypothesis – that my neurons are exhausted with all their constant firing up and firing down as I switch from one thing to the next (times a million). And while that does give me some explanation for why they are all sweaty and complaining all the time (and are they setting up sleeping bags under my eyes to rest? That would explain THAT issue as well), it also plunges me into despair, because I cannot hope to attain the solution: focusing on one thing at a time.

The chipper author matter-of-factly just set about his day, from thence forth, striving to do one thing at a time. He ate his breakfast, drank his coffee, turned on his computer, did some writing, read the newspaper, etc… all in a nice peaceful succession.

If I tried doing just one thing at once, one or more members of this family would be in great peril, something we were planning to eat would burn, we would completely run out of clothes to wear, AND my children would be illiterate forever, among about 782 other negative outcomes. Moms have no choice; we must switch-task at the approximate rate of 37 things/second, or bad things happen.

I can’t even load the dishwasher after a meal from start to finish anymore. In the 6 minutes it takes to put the dishes in, I have to stop about 3 times to move Miles away from the dishwasher as he tries to put the dirty knives in his mouth, twice to call Strider to come play with Miles in another room, once to go help Colsen in the bathroom, once to answer the phone, and 16 times to tell kids to stop doing something. Not only are my neurons getting a workout, but my hands are dried to the texture of leather by the time I finish re-washing them 22 times in that span of 6 minutes.

Even my simple skincare routine is not possible in my current state of life. According to this “routine” I am supposed to put one potion on my face in the morning, let it dry, then put another lotion on. In the span of 2 minutes that it takes for the first to dry, it is very likely that I will have had to: start a load of laundry, wash the hardened toothpaste off the kids’ sink, make 2 beds, start breakfast, get 2 people dressed, and checked my email. Needless to say, that 2nd step gets forgotten about 80% of the time. So now I’m walking around without sunscreen!

My neurons are exhausted, my hands are leathery, my face will soon be leathery, and my brain is now incapable of composing and expressing a complete thought all in a row. And they say motherhood isn’t glamorous?

I guess it’s good to know what the diagnosis is anyway, even if I can’t do anything about my multitasking inefficiency. And the other good news is that even though I don’t have time to give my body a workout these days, at least my neurons are getting a massive one. If it doesn’t kill them, that is. I need to go get some Neuron Gatorade.

Staying at home

During this journey of motherhood I have often had the despairing cry thought, "Why didn't anyone tell me this ahead of time?!"

Have you even been there?

We all have grand expectations of what life will be when.  When the kids get a little older and can feed themselves, when I don't have to change diapers anymore, when my baby sleeps through the night.  I had grand expectations regarding when I became a stay at home mom.

Through the lens of my when, I saw a bliss to not going into work every day.  I anticipated the joy I would feel being with my child all day long, loving her and nurturing her.  I could not wait to have a spotless house (as I would have plenty of time to clean and keep it neat, of course).

So when my little bundle of joy arrived, I struggled through the question, "WHY DIDN'T ANYONE TELL ME?!?!"

Young Mom, maybe you have achieved all that I just described, and life as a stay at home mom is a beautiful and satisfying experience.  I rejoice with you in that.  But, maybe your experience has been more like mine...and I empathize with you.  Or, maybe you are a working momma and you long for the greener grass on the other side.  I understand.  And I must confess, there have been many days that I looked at the mother who works and felt that grass was much greener.

When my baby girl arrived, it didn't take long to realize that my expectations would be crashing down around me.  I didn't anticipate that being needed all day (and night) long would be so draining. Quickly I learned that nursing was no easy task, and while friends struggled with not having enough milk, I found that there was also a struggle when your body overproduces it.  So even nurturing my child through nursing was a struggle.

And that clean house?  Who has time to clean when you are exhausted and needed constantly...

Of course, in those first few months I still held onto the hope of a clean house when the baby gets older.  Only it never occurred to me that as she gets older, she gets mobile.  Oh, and she also gets a little tornado-like, yanking things out of baskets, down from end-tables, out of cupboards and drawers.  And needs to be watched like a hawk.  All. Day. Long.  

I am here to tell you, sweet young mom, that motherhood isn't going to be what you expect.  But God can use even your disappointment to draw you closer to himself.  (There is much therapy in crying out to Him in despair at 2 AM when your child won't go to sleep) And you can take heart in knowing that, even though it might not be as you expected, it is good.  God promises us that children are a gift in Psalm 127:3 "Behold, children are a gift of the Lord.  The fruit of the womb is a reward."  Rest in that promise.