Monkey See, Monkey Do

My darling angels are quite a pair. I love having them so close in age. It's not always easy, but I love the way they interact and play together. Jacob is the fearless leader and Kaylen is the fearless follower. Do not be deceived, she might be the follower now, but only because her baby brain doesn't yet think of everything Jacob's big boy brain does. Eventually, I have a feeling she will be leading #3 on a merry game of follow the leader.

A trip to the park seemed in order today. It was comfortably chilly outside and sunny and a day that the playground beckoned. Plus, I've been trying to peel wallpaper with two layers of paint off my kitchen walls and it's not going well. I kind of have a one track mind when I start a project. I'm at the giving up point with the wallpaper and used the good weather as an excuse to walk away. The kids have been very patient with me as I labored away these last few days. Jacob even offered to help so I gave him a tool to scrape. Once I realized he was gouging the sheetrock, I sent him outside to "work". Oops.

The playground was soggier than I expected, but the kids had so much fun wiggling and sliding and climbing. I like to maximize their energy burn when we are outside playing so I suggested a little walk around the soccer field. The kids thought it was brilliant and off we went. As we rounded the third corner of the square field, we came upon bleachers with a few steps up, a flat platform and then a wheelchair ramp that looped around. Not only was it the perfect de-enegizer, it was noisy too. What more could a kid ask for?

Around and around they went. My only requirement was that they not climb up into the bleachers. It wasn't all that long ago that Jacob went head over heels down some bleachers and I had no desire to repeat that experience.
Well, of course, Jacob climbed up into the bleachers. He needed a "rest", he told me. Well who do you think needed a "rest" then too? The small girl who totters around on two tiny legs. Who falls frequently. Who is too small for a body cast should her pint sized self hurtle down bleachers. Ah, monkey see, monkey do.

I laid down the law and told them we could go "rest" in the car on the way home if they were so tired. And they crashed their way back down the steps and around to the wheelchair ramp. They were not that tired!

As I watched them run, it came to me that parenting is an all important game of monkey see, monkey do. The difference is, the results when the players are grown and moving on, can be life-altering, man-making, or heart breaking results. If I flash back to the past few days of ripping and scraping that stubborn wallpaper, have I modeled frustration in a way that teaches my kids to keep trying when it gets tough, to keep your temper in check and walk away if you can't, to be patient and wait for the results I want? Or have I showed them how to give up, get mad, and pout?

Dads, are you showing your boys how to treat women with tenderness and respect? How to help around the house? How to be tough and strong and the security of the family? Likewise, are you showing your daughters the high standard a woman should expect in a man, or how a woman deserves to be treated, or that her mind is as valuable as her face?

Mom's, are you allowing your boys to become men? To get a little dirty, play a little rough, to learn to stand up for what is right and to fight against wrong? Are you showing your daughters that putting family first isn't declaring yourself invalid? That our fathers and husbands are to be adored and admired and respected? That being a loving, attentive wife and mother is more precious than living a life of shopping and lunch dates and coffee breaks?

Little eyes watching me, seeing all I do. Help them see right through me, and all the way to You.