Hey Mama Monday: I Love You to the Moon and Back, but I Can’t Take You There (yet), Mama

We often feel guilty that we can’t do all the fun things with our children that we see other families doing. Maybe it is due to finances, illnesses, an overload of work, or maybe we just have a lot of very young children who keep us exhausted. We dream of taking our children to exotic or educational places while knowing it is not the season for us. This season of staying home can become depressing, especially during the winter. Let’s talk about getting out of our own slump of depression and then consider some practical ideas for home-based fun.

I have struggled with depression, and as real as the feelings were, they weren’t permanent. Just a season of low feelings–not a label of who I was. Sometimes it’s our hormones fluctuating during pregnancy or nursing, weaning, exhaustion, menopause, or the dreary weather! Here’s what helps me:

• Constant prayer is vital–alone with your God, with your husband, and with your children. Get prayer warriors involved. Praying for others takes the focus off self. (If you are dealing with depression, email us, and we will put your name on our staff prayer list this week. (dwuehler@theoldschoolhouse.com)
• Study the scriptures. This is like medicine. You have to force yourself to take it, but it will do its work in you. Memorize Scripture like “Thou art my hiding place; thou shalt preserve me from trouble; thou shalt compass me about with songs of deliverance. Selah” (Psalm 32:7).
• Ask God to wake you up. This could be a spiritual battle, and you have been lulled to sleep by the enemy whose goal is to pull us into a self-focused, all-consuming passion about how we feel. Ask God to help you get up and obey His commands for your life and family, despite the feelings. “Wake up the mighty men … let the weak say, I am strong” (Joel 3:9-10).
• Smile in faith. Praise in faith. Worship music is a must. Rest; eat less sugar and carbs.
• Shift your focus from those all-encompassing, deceitful feelings to your unwavering God. Accept the fact that you have nothing to give, then give God your nothing and allow Him to create something from it.

These suggestions have been well tested. When I force myself to do these things, I come out victorious. I know God will deal bountifully with you as you make the best of the low times. Joy will return.

While you are working your way out of depression, set your children up with some at-home fun days. Tent making, popcorn eating, board game playing, clay modeling, face painting, audio books, or virtual field trip days. ( Virtual Field Trips )

I am having one of those days today so I had the kids cuddle up with me and each read their Bible chapters aloud. Then we put on our Chuck Black CDs and pulled out the LEGOs™, and everyone is creating and listening. The only thing that would top this day for my kids might be a trip to the moon.

Deborah Wuehler is the Senior Editor and Director of Production here at The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine. She would say she is a very ordinary homeschool mom–with one exception: she has an extra-ordinary God Who provides all she needs for life and homeschooling. She has eight children aged 11 to 29. Deborah’s mission is this: to point other homeschoolers to the Lord in all they do, think, and feel—and to confirm that they, too, can find everything they need for life, godliness–and homeschooling–in their knowledge of Him (2 Peter 1:3, 4).