What We Eat

How does that old adage go? You are what you eat? ahhh no, strike that, how about: You might be a mom if ...

* you have become an expert at peeling grapes ... yeah you read that right ... grapes, not oranges.
* you can cut any type of food into minuscule pieces that will easily slide into and out of a 12 month old.
* you are so in the habit of these minuscule cutting techniques, your food usually ends up this way, too.
* you frequently and willingly test baby food with the tip of your tongue for temperature control.
* not a meal goes by that you don't employ the airplane, train, or any other fun/distracting/ha-I got-you-to-eat method at least once!
* the number 1 reason you know you are a mom is if you eat a hot meal all by yourself without cutting, sharing, or reheating multiple times and are in 7th heaven.

It's really the little things that matter when you are a mom. There's nothing that could have prepared me for the utter selflessness that comes with the mom territory. Sometimes God disguises grace as ignorance. If I would have known just how different the way I eat would be; would I still have made the decision to have children? Sure, that is stretching it a bit, but there are definitely days when all I'd like is to do is eat my own container of yogurt without having to spoon it into 3 begging mouths, who more then likely already ate their own yogurts.
Sometimes my priorities totally need to be in check. I often find myself bending over backwards for my kids, making sure they all get a taste of mommy's yogurt. All I'm doing is reinforcing a sense of entitlement sometimes. I often need to refocus my priorities and make sure my kids know God comes first, then their daddy, and then their 3 hungry little mouths. How will my children learn virtues like patience, kindness, gentleness, self control if their every need is immediately gratified? It's okay if they don't get a taste of my yogurt, it's ok if mom voids snack time, it's ok if they don't get that cool toy at the store everyone else is getting; sometimes being denied is a blessing in disguise. It's important that us moms aren't just focusing on the earthly apples and bananas but we're giving our children a daily dose of the fruit of the spirit, as well.