Ever need a vacation from your vacation?
This past week we decided to take a long weekend for a family getaway. I start getting restless to get away every few months or so. I must have gypsy in my blood or something. LOL.
We jam packed 4 days with about a weeks worth of fun, activities, visiting friends, and bonding time with each other. Whew! It was definitely a whirlwind....closing the amusement park (which we haven't done since the kids were born), riding roller coasters (which I haven't done in probably 15 years), staying at our vacation spot until 9:30pm then started home instead of leaving much earlier in the day. We packed no strollers, or back packs with extra clothes or jackets just in case it got cool. We stayed out till 12:30am almost every night. It was definitely a big kid vacation!
A big kid vacation...Whew!!! Now I think I need a senior citizen vacation to recoup from it all. Lol!
When I reflect on it, it causes me to pause... my kids are growing up, we just had probably our first big kid vacation. My oldest will be leaving for college next year this time (God willing). Have I instilled in my kids independence, confidence, a fear of the Lord. Have I, and am I, helping them to grow closer in their relationship to the Lord? Have I and am I helping them to love each other (their siblings) in a way that is honoring to God? Have I and am I training them up in the ways of the Lord? Have I and am I showing them the love of Christ in my relationship with them? Have I and am I being the Mom that God is calling me to be for my kids? To be the example for my kids to see in my relationship to my husband? I believe it is essential to every now and then to step back and evaluate, so as not to coast and think and assume everything is going ok.
So I ask my kids those same questions in different ways....what do I do right, what do you wish I was more of, what changes would you like to see...Sometimes those answers are hard to swallow and sometimes I get the sweetest blessings. This past year one of my kids answered the question "What would you like to see more of? or what are you disapointed with?" The answer was simply "I wish we had salad more often with dinner." LOL. Ok I can deal with that. But without asking those questions and probing the kids, I may never know their hearts. Even something as simple as having salad for dinner.
Can you guess what we are having with dinner tonight? Yep...SALAD!
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