Our Life!: What is the Secret to Being a Good Parent?

I need to know. This parenting thing is much harder than I ever thought it would be. There are times I want to run away and hide. That is not possible but its what I want to do. I am have constant feelings of guilt and for no reason what so ever. If Owen has a hard day, its my fault. If he is hurting, its my fault. If he is mean to someone, its my fault. If he gets hurt by someone, its my fault. If Shane is crying, its my fault. If he looks sad because he cant smile yet, its my fault.

These are all things that I have no control over but feel so guilty for all the time. Hense, running away to hide.

Everyday I wake up and say today I will do it differently. I will try harder to not get distracted when I am sitting down with Owen to play. I wont think about the piles of laundry, the dishes in the sink, the dirty floors and the unmade beds. I will sit with him and enjoy the time I have. I am usually unsucessful. I get distracted and get up to do what needs to be done.

I am a better mother out of the house. Less distractions. Its so much easier for me to say "OK O, lets go to the park" or "OK O, lets go get ice cream". This way we pack up and are away from the mess for some one on one time. Bonding. We have the best conversations in the car. He loves to be out and about. I love to be out and about. I guess I have to accept the fact that we are not really home bodies.

That doesnt mean we dont like to be home. There is nothing better than staying in on a crisp, fall afternoon with a fire going in the fireplace, french onion soup in the crock pot, and Sigor Ros playing in the back ground. That is our families ideal "at home/family time".

Brian is more of a home body. Its probably because he is always away from the home. He is working, traveling, and for the past six weeks has been running the majority of the errands. I am lucky to have such a hard working husband. So I try to give him his Sundays at home!

This post has spun off. So the secret to being a good parent? I dont have the answer. I have said it before and I will say it again, if you love your kids and give them positive attention they will turn out ok. Thats my secret to parenting. I dont know if its the secret but its mine.

These are the times I live for...goofing around with my boys!