PSA - Some tips I learned as a young mother....

This morning while talking to my Mom, I realized I've learned some things along this journey called motherhood. I thought I'd share some of the things I learned about taking young children to church, mostly because they're funny.

When attending church, don't sit in the row with the light switch for the chapel, especially if your husband is the ward clerk and you're alone with more than one child. Ok, yes if you really must know back in the day when the ward clerk sat on the stand BJ turned off the lights while I was taking care of Clint. I know, it was a rookie mistake. But I learned, I really never sat on that row again! I mean really who puts those light switches there anyway?? They should be under lock and key, because as soon as the lights go out everyone turns to look in that direction to see who turned them off. Everyone except the young mother with the newborn that is. She doesn't notice for a minute or two, then she quickly turns the lights back on and quickly leaves the meeting while she listens to the rest in the foyer eating Goldfish.

Next lesson - don't let said toddler lay on the floor underneath the pews. I know it seems harmless enough. It's carpeted, it takes up less room than the pew. He doesn't kick the bench that way and it's less noisy. However, again while taking care of the baby there is that off chance that he might G.I. Joe crawl underneath all the benches up to the front of the chapel and run down the aisle back to your seat. It wouldn't be so bad if everyone didn't know who he belonged to or if he didn't return to you. Even worse, he might do it while you're speaking and Grandma and Grandpa are watching him. Then what are you supposed to do? Better to just teach them to sit on the seat like everyone else as painful as that can be at times. The only break is when they do it the first time and your in the hospital after just having the baby. Then people can only blame the father, I mean he never really watches the kid anyway right?

OK, the last lesson for the day is try to not let them fight in nursery class. I know it's not like you send them in there telling them to beat up on the new kids. But it is awfully embarrassing to have them come and get you and tell you that he can't stay in nursery that day because he was fighting. If he's good next week they'll allow him to stay. All I can say is hopefully that was just bad peer pressure. It starts younger than you think. I thought it was more of a teenager problem, but no apparently it starts at 2.