I have been reading Six Ways to Keep the “Little” in Your Girl by Dannah Gresh over the last few days. The first thing Dannah stresses is “connectedness” – intentional togetherness. This connectedness builds and develops a value system in our children.
I can get so caught up in what I need to do that I often forget to take the time to intentionally connect with my girls. Dannah offers a little quiz to test your connection i.q. I was relieved that I scored pretty well, but I was also struck by some areas that need big improvements.
I am, by nature, not a talkative person. As much as I enjoy being around other people, there are times when I just want to be by myself. I find that I like things done a certain way and it’s hard for me to let go and allow little hands to participate (i.e. cooking, crafting).
Guess what my seven year old enjoys? Talking! She is at the age of questioning too and that results in more talking. My girls aren’t the kind that sit sweetly while I talk to a friend or mark a task of my to-do list. There are many moments of frustration, moments that I don’t always handle so well. I find myself thinking, “If I can just get this one thing done, then I can sit and spend time with them.” But there is always something that gets added to the ever growing to-do list.
I want my girls to feel like they can come to me with questions, concerns, and feelings so that we can have open dialogue. I don’t want them to wonder, “How will mom react? Is she too busy?” Each day I pray that God will do a mighty work, and despite my shortcomings, he would bless us with an open and comfortable mother-daughter relationship. I can see that this sort of relationship will allow me to teach my girls values so that they can grow into healthy young women.
How can you connect with your daughter? If your a daughter, how can you connect with your mother?
Karen
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