"Don't Make Me Count to Three!"

I am currently reading the book "Don't Make Me Count to Three!"...A Mom's Look at Heart-Oriented Discipline by Ginger Plowman and I am really enjoying it. Marlee is definitely at a challenging age because we want to walk her through her discipline issues correctly, but we're not always sure she understands what is going on. For a while now, the most important thing has been obedience (which she still struggles with), but she is beginning to understand more, which means it is time for us to begin addressing her heart more. We are at least trying to get into the habit of it, so when she really does grasp what we are saying, we will have been practicing for a little while. This is a daunting task because it seems like every situation is different and what worked last time she hit Hadley might not be the same issue she was dealing with when she hit Cogan, etc., etc. The great news is that God has given us guidelines in His word, and He is our HOPE!!! I am so thankful for moms at church with older children who can say, "It really works...it will pay off!!" There are days where I see a light at the end of the tunnel, and there are days I wish the light at the end of the tunnel was a train that would take me out of my misery...just kidding...it's not that bad!!:) The good news is God is God EVERY DAY!!!!:) What a great hope and encouragement that is!!:) Our discipline journey is just beginning, and I am sure there will be lots to share along the way!!:) I wanted to include a story from this book that made me laugh out loud...I literally laughed out loud and could not stop...I hope it makes you laugh, too...(it's kind of long, but it's worth the read)

Proverbs 16:18 warns, "Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall."...He continuously has to remind me of my rebellious tendency to be proud, and he often humbles me. One particular lesson stands out. I learned humility well one Friday afternoon in the Winn Dixie Grocery Store about three years ago.

Normally, I do my grocery shopping in the morning while the store is not so crowded. But for whatever reason, I found myself waiting in the checkout line at 6:00 pm on Friday with my two children. The place was packed. There were cashiers at all 10 registers and six or seven carts in every line. In the line next to me, the very last line, waited a mother and her two small children. They were about the same ages as my children, three and five. Mini refrigerators filled with various drinks were strategically located at the end of each check out counter.

The five year old began to beg mom for a coke (Let the games begin!)

Mom gave a firm, "No." the boy began to walk over to the refrigerator.

Mom said (loudly), "You better not open that door!" The boy opened the door.

"You better not pull a drink out of there, Mister!" The boy grabbed a coke.

"If you open that coke you are going to get it!" The boy unscrewed the cap, tossed it on the floor, and took a big swig.

Mom was screaming now, having completely lost it. "You just wait until we get home and your daddy hears about this! You kids never listen to me. I've had it up to here with you both!"

No one was able to decipher the exact location of "here" but we kept listening anyway. It's not that we were being nosy. It's just that there is nothing else to do while waiting in line, so this scene had the full attention of every customer. Now, in order for all these people to watch the scene unfold, they had to look past me and my children, who on this particular day were behaving well. Enter pride. Rather than having compassion for this poor mom and the struggles she was having with her children, I smugly thought, "You won't see my kids acting like that."

And then it happened. My three-year-old daughter, Alex, was standing right behind me when all of a sudden she blurted out the most horrible three words imaginable. It was as if she grabbed one of the microphones from a check-out counter and yelled into it with all her might. Waving her hands frantically in front of her face, in a BOOMING voice, she screams, "Mama! You pooted!" My entire body froze. Time stood still. To this day, I do not know which was worse-the second she blurted it out or the minute it took for everyone to realize it was true.

I am a living testimony of Proverbs 11:2a, "When pride comes, then comes disgrace." Dear Mom, as you experience success in your parenting, please do not become prideful. Par in a grocery store!

WHAT A GREAT REMINDER!!!:)