Presence Not Presents

Lord, I pray that you help me remember what's important. Help me remember that my presence is the greatest present of all. -Amen I am that mama who is always spoiling her kids with things. They want an extra snack or a small toy when we go out? So be it. I always tell myself that my kids may not remember all the little things, but they will remember that mommy and daddy loved them. What I often don't think about is that our love isn't measured in material things.

I am not going to say our kids don't want gifts. They definitely want ALL the things. All of them. But, when they get older, they won't have a clue how much money you spent on them. Toys will be played with once and forgotten until they reach their demise in the giveaway bucket. Clothes are outgrown and gadgets stop working. One thing they won't forget is how much time we spent with them. Our time isn't measured in minutes. We can sit by our kids all day long, but they will know if we are truly present with them. I am the world's worst at nodding my head and giving un-huhs at just the right moment with my 7-year-old's Minecraft stories, but I am trying to make my time with my kids more intentional. What does intentional quality time look like? Instead of physically being there with our children and mentally being on another planet (work, chores, anything but this), let's vow to make our time spent intentional. When our kids come and talk to us, we should put the phone down and make eye contact. So many conversations are through screens. Our face-to-face ones shouldn't be barred by those same little pixelated rectangles. Let's look up into those little blue eyes and give more than an uh-huh and a nod every once in a while. If we aren't being intentional with our time and being physically, mentally, and emotionally present with our kids, how will they learn to be? The greatest gift we can give to our children is our presence. Be intentional and let your child know they are worth more than a screen, a book, a notebook... It's our presence, not our presents, that matters.