Hi

Lea - posted on 11/18/2008

You must be too busy. Cut out the things that are not necessary. Only have one in sports or music in a quarter. Make time with them a priority. The young time of life when they are listen is a short one. I have seven. Make it a point to have individual time with them as well. That is key. I do certain chores with one daily. I also only take one grocery shopping. Man, they sure talk a lot on those trips!

Karen - posted on 11/18/2008

Hi there i too have three boys and one girl! I know exactly what you mean, i was just telling my husband the other day that i want them to remember the good things in life and not that mom was stressed out all the time. Some days i really have to take a step back and decompress and really decide if i need to blow the whistle or let them handle it and let them take on some responsibilities for themselves. I try to do too much sometime and making sure they have perfect hair and no fur on thier teeth is something they need to learn to take pride in instead of me nagging them. letting them take some of this helped me alot. I still struggle with letting them just be sometime (expecially when thier hair looks like something nested in the back and they are going to school like that) but it is better for all of us in the long run. Taking time even if its just to read to them for 15 miniutes, i some time take my teenager on a date. i think they will grow up thankful and remember those sweet moments. Hang in there we know what you are going through! Hope this helped some!

Teresa - posted on 11/18/2008

Hi Kimberly . . . That's the thought we all have at one time or another. Demands of life can be overwhelming, and we feel like we can't create those memory moments. But when I look back at my own childhood, the memories I remember aren't the ones my parents tried so hard to create for me - it's things that just spontaneously happened - my parents BEING there, family dinners together, funny comments, things that become an "inside joke", etc. Don't stress about creating memories - they'll create themselves. Being present is the key. As far as being well-balanced goes - if you are a well-balanced person, and taking the time to maintain your own sense of balance (and sanity!) your kids will catch that from you. At least that's my theory! ;-)