Getting to Know Your Kids Inside and Out

Being a parent brings a lot of responsibilities. But together with these responsibilities are opportunities to see a miracle - your kid growing up from being a baby to toddlers to graders, tweens and teens.

Most moms would agree that if only given a chance, they would stop their kids from growing up and just let them be their cute and adorable little selves.

For a mother who loves her kid so much, it's a great, or even the best, feeling to be able to shower them with hugs and kisses whenever possible. On the other hand, it's quite a challenge to see them maturing (growing tall and gaining more knowledge through the years).

So what we can do then is really find time to get to know them and guide them in the right path as they're growing up. Communication is key so they can open up without hesitation to you any time they feel like it.

Becoming their best friend is a good step. In this way, you build trust and a deeper relationship that can go on for the rest of your lives.

Never let a day go by without talking to your kids. It's an effective way of knowing them better inside and out.

How the Lord Created the Mother

I was so touched by a Mother's Day post on Paulo Coelho's Blog which a friend and former high school classmate shared on Facebook today. I'm sharing this in its entirety in the hope of touching more lives.

The post is entitled "Character of the week: The Mother."

When the Good Lord was creating mothers, He was into his sixth day of “overtime” when an angel appeared and said: “You’re doing a lot of fiddling around on this one.”

And the Lord said, “Have you read the specs on this order?

* She has to be completely washable, but not plastic;
* Have 180 movable parts… all replaceable;
* Run on black coffee and leftovers;
* Have a lap that disappears when she stands up;
* A kiss that can cure anything from a broken leg to a disappointed love affair;
* And six pairs of hands.”

The angel shook her head slowly and said, “Six pairs of hands… no way.”

“It’s not the hands that are causing me problems,” said the Lord. “It’s the three pairs of eyes that mothers have to have.”

“That’s on the standard model?” asked the angel.

The Lord nodded.

“One pair that sees through closed doors when she asks, ’What are you kids doing in there?’
“Another here in the back of her head that sees what she shouldn’t but what she has to know.
“And of course the ones here in front that can look at a child when he goofs up and say, ’I understand and I love you’ without so much as uttering a word.”

“Lord,” said the angel, touching His sleeve gently, “Go to bed. Tomorrow…”

“I can’t,” said the Lord, “I’m so close to creating something so close to myself.

Already I have one who heals herself when she is sick
“…can feed a family of six on one pound of hamburger
“… and can get a nine-year-old to stand under a shower.”

The angel circled the model of a mother very slowly. “It’s too soft,” she sighed.

“But she’s tough!” said the Lord excitedly. “You cannot imagine what this mother can do or endure.”

“Can she think?”

“Not only can she think, but she can reason and compromise,” said the Creator.

Finally, the angel bent over and ran her finger across the cheek.

“There’s a leak,” she said. “I told You were trying to push too much into this model.”

“It’s not a leak,” said the Lord. “It’s a tear.”

“What’s it for?”

“It’s for joy, sadness, disappointment, pain, loneliness, and pride.”

And the Mother was created – a work of genius.

Happy Mother's Day to all amazing moms!