Articles – Parenting
Rear a Radiant Child!
by Julie Busby
Many years before I was saved, I worked as an early childhood teacher at a shelter for battered women and children. There was a little girl there with fine blonde straggly hair and striking blue eyes that had a wisdom behind them far beyond their five years. Her name was Emma, and she was brought in because she suffered from serious neglect and abuse by the very hands that were supposed to protect her. When I first met Emma she would slowly rock back and forth in a corner while huddled in a ball. As I began to interact with her, she would follow me and sit down and begin her rocking again.
On one very memorable day, Emma sat waiting for me, still huddled in her ball but this time with bright expectant eyes watching my every move. I brought out the toys ready to begin my day. I will never forget that day. Emma stood up and put her hand on mine and pulled me toward a pretty Barbie doll, “Miss Julie, will you love me, will you promise not to hurt me? Will you protect me? Will you make me feel important? Will you show me how to laugh?” At that moment I realized the importance of time, of love, of play in a child’s life. I have not forgotten little Emma.
I am now a mother of two beautiful boys. Life can get very busy and chaotic with housecleaning, preparing meals, my daily devotions, endless loads of laundry, grocery shopping, squeezing in phone calls with friends, feeding the dogs, being a help to my husband…and that’s just my routine in the morning!
Oh wait…I hear something…. “What did you say, Mario? You want Mommy to play with you? Okay, as soon as I get this phone call in, mop the floor, and put away these clothes….” An hour goes by, and I have forgotten that I need to bake some cookies for one of the girls in my Sunday school class.
Well, Mom, YOU know how this goes; you could probably finish the article yourself. Yet this time a face came into my mind, little Emma’s. I stopped what I was doing, put down my mop, and sat down next to my youngest and helped him put his toy cars in a long line. We didn’t talk much, just played.
I always know when I don’t spend enough play time with my young boys. I must make an effort to spend at least 30 quality minutes to an hour with each of them EVERY DAY. Sometimes they want me to play blocks with them; sometimes they want me to take them to a thrift store and shop for toys. Sometimes we just act goofy and pretend to wrestle.
There are days when things are so hectic that I miss these times. When I do, my boys often start to fuss with each other, whine, or get in “trouble.” It is on these days that I realize that the laundry can wait. My boys will only be five and six for such a short moment in time. It is a time I schedule, like I schedule a doctor’s appointment or attending church. Time, play, and love are powerful tools to make your child a radiant one!
Ten Quick Creative
Ideas to Interact With Your Child
1. Make homemade play dough and put out your rolling pins and cookie cutters.
2. On a warm spring/summer day, get a large bucket. Add some bubbles, throw in a few floating objects, and enjoy some water fun.
3. Get out some old scraps of material or odd objects and make a collage on a large piece of construction paper.
4. Buy a bag of gravel and put it in a large bucket. Add some toy cars and shovels (outside activity!).
5. On a snowy day, get a large bucket of snow and put it in your bathtub. Get out your mittens and make a snowman in the bathtub!
6. Go to the thrift store and purchase some silly outfits and play dress up.
7. On a rainy day pack a picnic lunch, make a play tent in your living room, and have a picnic!
8. Get out finger paint, some newspaper, and some old t-shirts for your kids and paint away!
9. Have a story hour where you have your child bring all his stuffed animals. Have them sit in a little row and tell stories that your child picks out.
10. Make a pizza together. Sing silly songs and invite one of your child’s friends to join you to eat the pizza.
Additional Resources: Training Kings and Queens by Cindy Schaap
