My son and I had a defining moment this week. Those moments that make you think and feel so deeply it’s almost unfathomable. You can’t explain it, really, you just know that this moment will change your life. This is exactly how I felt with my son this week.
Well, I had a moment just like that a few weeks back. My 4-year-old was driving me up the wall. He was “Tigger” personified… It was bounce, bounce here, roar, roar there… I just knew it was going to be one of THOSE days. After many warnings, I had just had enough. My voice got louder and my words got harder. Eventually sending him to his room.
And then it happened
That sinking feeling – I knew I was wrong. Then the questioning began, “Should I leave it?”, “Must I say something to my son?” Deep down, I knew what had to be done… I had to apologize (and for those who know me, admitting that I was wrong does not come naturally).
I took one step at a time, slowly making my way up the stairs, I could hear my son’s sobs and this broke my heart! As I came through the door he lifted his red, tear-stained, face. I sat next to him and slowly began to apologize for my anger and the way that I had dealt with the situation.  “Mommies can also make mistakes,” I said. “Please forgive me, I’m really sorry.” Still crying a little, he looked up at me and said, “It’s OK Mommy.” We cuddled, made up, and went downstairs for a snack.
THAT Was my defining moment.
It was a tough lesson to learn, but one well worth learning. As a parent I learned that I needed to be more thoughtful in a moment of frustration and, most of all, to never think that I am above asking my children for forgiveness.
Beautiful. We are not going to be perfect parents. Our children learn from our example and this is a good one. Hugs
Amen to that! x
I love this!!! I have been having many moments like this recently. It does really break your heart, but the great things is they still love us. It is great that you are teaching him forgiveness and you as an adult are willing to look at things and know we can still make mistakes even though WE are the parents. He will get a HUGE take away from this. Great job mama!
Being a parent is tough! It takes work, patience and dedication. It`s been said that it`s the hardest job in the world and that`s for a reason.
Being a parent is never easy, and I’ve yet to meet one that really does have the patience of a Saint. We’ve all snapped and lost patience with our little ones, who don’t always have the capacity to know when to stop (or maybe they do and just like testing us?).
By doing what you did (apologizing), you have shown your son that we all make mistakes and it’s okay to do so. Parents shouldn’t beat themselves up about getting to the end of their tether and sending children to their room, if we did we would all be covered in bruises!
xx
[…] parents, we teach our children about forgiveness. If a friend or sibling has been unkind and apologized, they should forgive, mend fences and start […]