My Little Helper

I've recently discovered that Anna apparently watches me more than I realized. She's become quite the little helper - although her "help" can hardly be considered as such. I've been finding her doing the most random things - like opening the dishwasher on her own. Getting in the cabinets and getting dishwasher tablets out and actually putting them in the correct spot in the dishwasher. She also likes to get the broom out of the pantry and tries her best to sweep the floors. She also gets wash cloths and acts like she's mopping the floor. Those are things I don't mind so much.

Her "help" in other areas is a different story. She likes trying to help sort laundry after it's already been sorted, thus getting the piles all mixed up again. She also likes to help push the wet clothes into the dryer while grabbing dirty clothes and adding to it. She also enjoys trying to help me unload the dishwasher.

Most notably though is her new found skill of toilet cleaning. It only took her watching me once for her to discover she'd like to give it a try. I left the bathroom to get some paper towels to clean the mirrors and upon my return found her with the toilet brush having at it, water flying everywhere, and an utter mess left to be cleaned. Once I got that cleaned up, I shook the bath mat so that I could sweep the floor when I quickly discovered the toilet water had splashed much further than I thought and was now sprinkled all over me and the bathroom. Fortunately, I was mopping anyway... I found her again today with the toilet brush and another mess.

It's at times like these that I remember the following verse:

"Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it." Proverbs 22:6

While I know this is referring to training children in becoming Christians, I also think it refers to teaching them life lessons, like responsibility, duties and roles, initiative, and overall skills that they need in life. While Anna's "helping" may cause more work than good, I try not to get too upset with her because I know she's just trying to help. I also like to think that I'm training her well and that she's learning at an early age what it means to be a wife and mother, and that to me means I'm doing my job as her mom. It's a high calling and one that reminds me daily that she's always watching me. I encourage each of you to ask yourselves, "What does my example reflect?"