The Child Remote Control

There is an invention that I have brewing in my head. I’m certain that I’d make millions if I can pull it off. It could be the lifesaver for all parents. I’ll share my idea with you, although I don’t have a patent yet so please don’t steal my idea: The child remote control. No, I’m not talking about a child friendly remote control. I’m talking about a real remote control for you to use ON your child. Let me explain the function with the following scenarios from my real life:

Mute:
Jack (2) screaming as I frantically pushed the cart through Costco. If he was my 1st child, I would have been too embarrassed to keep shopping. You see, Jack’s my 3rd so I tried my best to ignore him (and the stares from the other shoppers) and continued my shopping. After all, it is not often that I get to Costco and with only one kid. So I pushed on. I rather have pushed the mute button to freeze my screaming wreck of a son. I imagined whipping out my magic remote out of my purse and experiencing the immediate peace from silencing my son without the use of bribery or worse, threats!

Fast Forward:
When Luke, now 7, was an infant he cried and cried AND cried. It never stopped. I was so tired and desperate. Having a newborn is tough enough. The sleep is non-existent, your energy is fleeting, and your brain is mush. All I wanted was to push fast forward. I knew it wasn’t going to last forever, but in the moment it truly felt like FOREVER. Think of the endless possibilities with this button: potty training, terrible twos, and puberty (oh, I can’t even go there yet!).

Rewind:
Here’s the thing, though. It is these moments that strengthen us as mothers and comprise our experience of motherhood. Without the lows we wouldn’t truly experience and appreciate the highs. It is a journey for sure. And when our children are grown, we’ll wish to push rewind. It will seem as though those years of raising our children were on permanent fast forward and we will yearn for the moments of cuddling, imagining, and providing the guidance and nurturing that at times drain us now.

So for now, I’ll try the slow motion button. I will make more of an effort to slow down and enjoy the moment. I hope you can too.