I am not the biggest fan of New Year’s resolutions. Honestly, I am not sure I have ever made a New Year’s resolution that I have honored, but this year, I have decided to reflect honestly on the things I can do to be a better person and a better mom.
Be more patient. As a mother of 5, frankly, there are days I know I am right on the edge of losing it. When my 4 boys fight like it’s their job, when my youngest says the same thing 25 times, and when the oldest still asks me for help tying his shoes, all I want to do is scream!!!
Connect with my children every day in a meaningful way. This is an area, where I could definitely stand to improve. These days I spend my time connecting with my kids by either telling them to “stop it!” or asking them to “hurry up!”
Eat dinner every night as a family. This seems like an impossible thing to accomplish, and yet research shows that kids are far happier when each night you sit together for dinner as family. As far as these statistics go, my children are definitely part of the exclusion criteria when all they ever say is “do we have to sit together again??!!”
Limit the internet. We all know we have to be careful what our kids are exposed to. The internet is a great place for kids to find information they shouldn’t. I have been trying to be aware of this ever since my second grader asked me what was going on with the Kardashians.
Connect with and worship God more often. When your youngest child thinks that Jesus on the cross is the letter “t,” I am pretty sure it is time to reevaluate
Dress up more. I use the fact that I don’t have to go to work and I just want to be comfortable as an excuse but, honestly, I need to lose the yoga pants. It’s time to stop dressing like I am one month post-partum.
Do a better job making sure my kids eat healthier food. I guess I am tired of lying to my pediatrician. When they ask me if my child eats 5 servings of fruits and vegetables, of course, my answer is yes. My kids NEVER eat anything out of a box ; )
Spend less time on my own“device”- I feel like the biggest hypocrite when I try to limit my children to two hours a day on their devices. Clearly, I go WAY over that limit myself. I find myself checking my phone on a regular basis whether it is to read a text message, read my email, see what’s up on FaceBook or browse Pinterest . I know I need to ease up myself and set a better example for my kids.
Take more pictures of my kids. Over the years, I cannot tell you how many times there have been precious moments worth capturing that I have missed. It seems like every time there is a picture worth taking, my phone is either dead or my hands are full of everyone else’s crap
Clean my house more regularly. It is almost impossible keep my house clean and picked up. From the backpacks, coat, and, in my case, sports gear that gets dumped in the first spot my kids can find which is usually in the entry way where people can fall over it , to the handprints that are visible on every square inch of wall space in my mudroom. Perhaps it’s the unbelievable amount of pee that is left on every toilet seat in my house. This year, by some miracle of God, I will find a better way!
I hope you enjoyed reading my list. Maybe this will inspire you to come up with a list of your own. In the meanwhile, will you please share this list on Pinterest, Facebook or Twitter? Thank you and Happy New Year.
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