WPTM #42-46: Thanks to Anna

What Parenting Teaches Me 42-46

Brought to you by moments with my Anna.

WPTM #42:  Abba.  Anna dramatically calls out "Daddy!!  I need you!!!" very, very often.  She doesn't say what she needs or what's broken.  She just calls for him and him alone.  I sort of imagine that is how I call out to God in prayer.  I note the need for presence alone and not necessarily an answer or fix ... although those are also welcome and usually follow. :)

WPTM #43: Not By Sight.  Anna will take us by the hand to show us something she's created by saying,  "Close your eyes and I'll lead you."  In my head, I think about how we are to walk by faith and not by sight.  I hear my Father saying, "Close your eyes, child, let me lead you."

WPTM #44:  Small. Anna's drama-inducing moments are so silly to me.  She will tailspin into tears and wails for things like her bike rolling into grass, her kite not flying high enough, or tape not sticking to the wall.  I will have to view my so-called problems the same ... the way they look to my Father ... so small. Will help keep them in perspective.

WPTM #45: Treasuring Trinkets. Anna will treasure some of the most worthless things ... a scrap of paper in a certain color, an acorn, a discarded string, anything!  So often it's stuff that I would prefer we just throw away from the get-go and usually they do end up in the trash after Anna loses interest and I find them on the ground around the house.  When she is prizing these silly things, it reminds me to do an inventory of things that I hang on to in my head or in my heart that from a heavenly or eternal perspective are as good as trash... a waste of time and just clutter in my life.

WPTM #46: Self-Control.  Don't even get me started about how often I get onto Anna about her need for self-control - namely her need to control the whine, scream, or bossiness in her tone when she speaks to Noah.  What is especially humbling for me is when I am raising my voice to tell her she needs to control hers. Doh! And she's quick-witted enough to call me on it in the heat of the moment by saying, "You need to control your voice, too."  Touche, my love!  That WPTM moment just speaks for itself.