I grew up in a culture that had rules for life, one of those rules were you date, you get married, and then you have children. I started off on the wrong foot, I dated a great guy but then I got deeply involved with this guy and I ended up pregnant.
Yes, I was a teen mom in an Amish culture. They did not look kindly on young moms like me. Two months after giving birth to my firstborn son I was married to the father of my child. I was barely 18, I had been trained from a young girl to take care of a house. How to clean, cook, bake, preserve food, do laundry, and virtually any other thing that might require hard work. I could take care of the lawn mowing, the horse, and other outdoor duties.
I was not taught however to relate well with my husband and that caused some difficulties. Lucky for me I was a fast learner, I loved being a wife and a mom soon I had a houseful, by the time I was 26 I had all five of my children. It was natural and very enjoyable for me. I have talked to many moms who have struggled knowing what to do. I don’t pretend I have all the answers, I know there are hundreds of different ways to raise a family. I know what worked for mine and I know some of my advice has helped friends cope with some of their children.
After we left the Amish culture I had a few dear friends teach me some of their wisdom and it saved me some unnecessary grief along the parental highway. We are entering an era where some things are frowned upon when raising children. If you do one thing people frown and if you do another people frown, so what is a mom to do? I say a mom follows her gut and does what is best for her child.
My blog has been born out of my passion for passing on my wisdom and knowledge about being a parent. I know the struggles a young mom faces as she wakes in the middle of the night to a screaming baby, when those silent tears flow down her cheeks, as she tries everything in her power to calm down this little human who is dependent upon her for its survival, or the frustration of trying to get a toddler to calm down from a tantrum that was set off by nothing really, just the fact that you know he desperately needs a nap and he is determined to resist. I know the anxiety a mom feels inside her heart as she struggles with those preteen years of rebellion and as her children slowly grow to adulthood and seeing them make choices and mistakes that are opposite of her wish for their lives. It is vital they make their own choices and to allow those mistakes to take place, so they can learn, grow and thrive in this world.
The tears a mom will shed during her children’s lives could fill a small swimming pool. I salute moms everywhere as they take on the most important of roles this earth could ever produce because being a mom really is what shapes and molds the future of the human race. God placed inside every woman the capacity to give up her body for another, once you step over the threshold of motherhood so much changes, but I would not trade it for everything in this world! Go and be the best mom ever!!