Did you miss last week’s post? Catch up on the first three chapters of Be the Mom here.
Just a quick word before we dig into this week’s reading: This is supposed to be a book CLUB. That means that there are other people participating and sharing their thoughts besides myself. There were zero comment and zero link-ups in last week’s post–which was very disappointing for me because I want to know what YOU think about the book!!! I know for a fact that many of you have purchased/borrowed this book and many of you are reading it…so please take a few short minutes to leave your thoughts! And don’t forget…you have direct access to the author of this amazing book, Tracey Eyster. If you leave a question, you have the opportunity to have it answered from an AUTHOR and a veteran mom. How cool is that?!?!
Okay, stepping off my soapbox…
This week in our reading of Be the Mom, we discovered two more traps that moms can easily fall into: The Martyr Mom and the Busy Mom. I, unfortunately, can admit that I have been guilty of getting caught up in both of these traps!
Chapter 4: The Martyr Mom Trap
This premise of this chapter was all about how the “Woe is me” attitude about the daily grind of motherhood is really just evidence of an ungrateful heart. Tracey steps on our toes a little bit by not allowing ourselves to make excuses for an Eeyore-like attitude.
“My inability to find enthusiasm and joy in everyday momlife wasn’t the fault of my circumstances; it was the condition of my heart. The daily attitude a mom transfers to those within her home is a choice. You must embrace each day as an opportunity to influence those whom God has entrusted to you within your home and community.” -p. 55
Altering this attitude problem doesn’t just take “wanting” to fix it, it means taking action. Tracey outlines a few steps to action on page 45. I’m going ahead with step 1 by admitting that I sometimes have an Eeyore-like attitude about my job as a mom!
In addition to our attitudes, I was very convicted by the section on not being a sideline mom (in fact, it was what inspired my 30 for 30 Challenge in June). I have improved since this challenge, I am still often guilty of watching my children instead of playing with them. Although I don’t believe that every minute of every day should be spent entertaining our children (lest we feed into the entitlement/self-centeredness epidemic), but I DO believe that they DESERVE their mom’s undivided attention for a good chunk of the day.
Chapter 5: The Busy Mom Trap
When I first began reading this chapter, I was pretty certain that I hadn’t completely fallen into this trap. After all, I have gotten pretty good at saying “no” to things. However, when I began to examine my life, my priorities and how I spend my time…I realized that I have, in fact, fallen victim to yet another trap. Even though I don’t often overcommit myself outside our home, I can DEFINITELY overcommit myself WITHIN my home (especially when it comes to this little blog of mine).
This particularly hit home…
“…if a child wanders into the room when I’m in task mode, I can stop what I’m doing and spend some intentional time with him. When he’s ready to move on, he’ll go off and do his own thing again, and then I can finish up my task. That way, the task is left waiting, not the child.” -p. 67
Parenting these precious children of ours is the greatest and most important job we will have in this lifetime. I want my children to know that I took the time to teach them about God and to teach them to serve others…and, of course, to know that they are loved fully and completely by their Mommy.
Next week’s Assignment: Read Chapters 6 and 7 (and leave your comments, please!)
Do you have any questions for the author? Leave a question in the comments and we’ll choose a few to have Tracey respond to in next week’s post!
What did you think about this week’s reading? Leave a comment or link up below!
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Hi! I came across your blog recently..and love that you are doing a book club..i have my own kind of book review going on at my blog…I am reading Almost Amish by Nancy Sleeth.. when will your next club be and i would love to participate!
I did leave a comment for the last post but it wasn’t until yesterday and I explained why. I also had a question for the author. Chapter 5 really hit home. I am trying to be better at when my daughter approaches me about something that I give her my undivided attention. Whatever I am doing can probably wait, she will only be little for a short period of time and I don’t want to miss any of it.
I really enjoyed reading the book! In fact so much so that I passed it on to my SIL and I am forwarding the book club emails as well. I must say that I often fall into the “Eeyore” trap, and the “sideline mom” trap. My children (3 and 1 1/2) have always been very independent and willing to play by themselves or each other, so it is very easy for me to get into task mode and not want to quit once I get started. I really do need to enjoy them while they are these ages!
The book sounds great, so I’ll see if I can find a friend who has it, or look for it at Mardel. But as for this week, the part about the busy mom has been me, especially this last year with writing my book, but this year one of my big goals is to SLOW DOWN!!
I like having margin in my days and I’m a much happier, calmer, and gentler mom when I’m not in a hurry. But it has meant saying “no” to several things already, most noteably, deciding that I’m not going to worry about blogging (much) and building a big platform for my book, just trust that God will take care of things. I like having time to sit and talk to, or listen to, my kids.
What I like most about the book is that Tracey offers simple and practical ways to get out of the traps we face. They may take time or practice, but it can be done! Like Julie, my boys play well together and I am trying to get better at stopping whatever task I am doing to go “be” with them. Now that my oldest started full-day Kindergarten last week, I realize how time flies by! I’ve highlighted so many “Ah Ha!” moments in this book and have been telling all my friends in my Mom’s group at church that they should read this book! Thank you!