a mother's prayer.

dear heavenly father,

please help me to remember these very important things:

my children watch everything that i do.

my children listen to everything i say, including the tone inflection of my voice.  they listen and understand what the rise and fall means.  please help me to remember that.

 

help me to teach my children to love those around them... to love the beauty around them.

my children will do as i do... help me to remember that.

please help me to smile and have kind eyes.  please help me to be patient even when it feels impossible and i feel so alone.  help me to teach by showing how with love and gentleness.

thank you for my health.  thank you for the energy that i receive on a daily basis, even when i feel like i'm going to collapse into nothingness because i'm so tired.

father in heaven, help me to listen to my daughters.  help me to decipher their cries, to be calm during their tantrums, to help them to learn what it means to express themselves.

help me to breathe deep when i can feel my anxiety level raising.  help me to remember how important it is to be calm, and to be a good example to my babies.

help me to remember that this life is very, very short.

i pray to always remember the ultimate example of love, kindness, patience, gratitude, obedience, solemnity, graciousness... my Savior.  help me to be like Him.

help me to love endlessly.

help me to give continually.

help me to understand the needs of my babies, and to meet them with a gentle touch and a soft voice.

please let there be no room for bitter memories for my children, only because there were too many wonderful ones.

help us to laugh always like we do everyday.  help us to run and play and tickle and hug and kiss and chase and snuggle and squeal and kiss some more... those moments are frequent and mean so much to me. 

help me to focus on the little joys that run around my living room.  help me to set aside media, technology, and other distractions so that i can instead roll on the floor laughing with my daughters.

keep them safe, those little ones sleeping soundly in their beds.  give them good dreams and happy thoughts.  help them to wake up more healthy and stronger than they were today.

i am so grateful for what i've been given.  help me to remember that in the moments where i feel small or when i feel clenched up inside.  

thank you for my babies.  thank you, thank you, thank you.