Monday, January 31, 2011

Glimpse of success

There are days that every single thing is a challenge, but once in a while you get a glimpse of what you have been trying to teach your children.

We must first start this off by saying that we are told, and quite often I might add, that we are the ONLY parents that make our children do chores, that other kids get what they want, that we are strict, and that everyone else has this, and this, and this...Often these conversations lead to discussion about the importance of learning to work, appreciating what you have, serving others and valuing what you have achieved.  We are adamant about personal responsibility.  Kids need to understand boundaries and limitations, but they also need to know that if they work hard, they can achieve anything.

Usually the ride home from school is accompanied by complaints about how long their chore list is (and friends, it really isn't that bad...dishwasher, put away your clothes, homework).  But on this particular day as we turned the corner onto our street the boys noticed a neighbor out chipping the ice from the end of her driveway.  At that point Taylor mentioned that her son should be out there helping his Mom.  Of course my initial thought was to encourage the boys to go lend a helping hand, but I held back my comment and continued on to our home.  As we were walking in, Grant throws his things on the ground as says "Just a minute".  As he did that, Taylor must have been thinking the same thing because he then said "I'll get one of our shovels."  Both of my boys proceeded to go to the neighbors house and asked her if they could do it for her.  Soon they were joined by one of her children.  



What a proud moment as a Mother.  It brought tears to my eyes to see that my children are understanding the value of service and helping others.  I know most of the time they complain about helping in our home, but someday they will thank us for teaching them the importance of work.

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