Free Printable Quote: The Greatest Gift You Can Give to Your Child

I have first written this blog post when my son, Michael was 6 years old. He is now 11. I can’t believe how time flies when you’re having fun! Hence, I wanted to update this post because this is one topic I am most passionate about, and one which is most important.

Life can be extremely busy, especially if you have more than one kid. But as you can see with my eldest, 5 years have passed just like that, in a blink of an eye. That is why, it is more important than ever to spend that time with your children now while they are still young. Build beautiful memories with them. Have great conversations. Discover their likes and dislikes. Their dreams and aspirations.

Free Printable Quote: The Greatest Gift You Can Give to Your Child

Time is more value than money. You can get more money, but you cannot get more time.

– Jim Rohn

I couldn’t agree more with Jim Rohn. As important as money is, time is just as important, if not more.

You don’t want to be on your death bed having millions of dollars, but wishing you spent more time with your family. And it does happened, unfortunately.

And that is why I chose to build my business from home even though I could easily go get a full time job, earn more money now that all my kids are at school. But I chose not to. I choose to stay home, build my business slowly but surely – all in the hopes of spending more time with my children. Because that’s a portion of my life I will NEVER get back. And I’d rather spent that time with my kids.

I know it does not work for every family, but this is what I chose to do for my family.

But I’m not going to lie. It is sometimes a challenge to distribute your energy and time to every child (and I have four kids). But it is SO important to do so – so your child or children will continue to feel loved and cared for. So if you want to block some time with your kids, here’s a free weekly planner which you can use to do so.

And that is why I LOVE this quote so much. Plus, I have free printable quote for you today. But make sure to read until the end of the post to get it. I promise, you will LOVE it!

The Story I’ve Written 5 Years Ago

I wanted to write today because of my eldest son, Michael.

You see, him being the eldest child in the family, he gets all the perks of having the newest clothes, toys and the first to do all the ‘big boys’ stuff – like experiencing the more challenging outdoor activities and games compared to his other siblings.

While his siblings get ALL the hand-me-downs clothing, toys, and limited challenging outdoor plays and activities.

But you see, being the eldest ain’t all that rosy.

As a parent, I have a lot of expectations of him because I needed him to be a good example to his siblings.

I always tell him, “Michael, you’re the eldest, so you better be a good example to your brother and sisters because they are constantly watching you”.

So I do discipline him more often than the other 3, I have to admit.

Mummy Guilt

Of course, I have mommy guilt. All.The.Time.

And with all that disciplining and scolding… I forget that he is still a child. And he still needs to be able to be a child – to have fun, to be silly, to make mistakes…

Sometimes I feel like I treat him more like an adult than a child, as I expect him to know EVERYTHING and do the right thing – which of course, is a really silly thing to do.

A Good Son & Big Brother

And with all that expectations, Michael has been nothing short but a responsible, kind, loving and helpful son and brother to his siblings.

He has helped me to tidy up, brings a diaper for Hannah when I needed one, runs his baby sister’s bath or the bigger bath (for him and his other siblings) and he really does look out for them as well no matter where we are.

As grateful as I am to Michael, unfortunately, I have noticed that I’ve been giving more attention to my younger children than to Michael. Or spending time on Netflix or on my phone – reading, checking emails, replying to my clients etc.

Then, mommy guilt kicks in. Again.

I know we all moms do this. But a little guilt is good sometimes to keep ourselves in check and keep us in line with what’s more important.

Spending More Time with Michael

Which brings me to this.

I needed to spend more time with Michael. And do less of the not-so-important stuff. I needed to talk and to listen to him. And give him the time to be himself. To express himself.

And I decided to do just that.

Michael did not have school today (Friday) because there was a Teacher-Only-Day at his school. So we’ve decided to go for morning tea. I asked him what he wanted and where he wanted to go. He wanted a chocolate cookie. I also got him a drink while I got myself an almond-cappuccino (yum!) while we shared a plate of hot kumara (sweet potato) chips.

I made an effort not to use my phone during this time.

So we talked about a number of things. Sometimes we were just being silly as we talk nonsense while he tells me about what he does at school. We laughed a lot too.

Then, we went to the park after that and he played his heart out.

Happy Michael

When we came home, Michael was skipping as he head towards the front door and he was beaming from ear to ear.

This just confirms my resolve that I have to make an effort to spend quality one-on-one time with each of my children because it is SO important for their emotional health.

And while it is a real challenge to do it with 4 kids, seeing Michael’s response today has made it easier for me to want to do this.

“A mother is only as happy as her unhappiest child“

I never wanted to take Michael’s feelings for granted and I wanted to show him just how much I love him and appreciate all he has done for us and the family.

Time Worth Spent

And as much as I want to spend that time working, spending this time with him was worth it because I’m giving him a portion of my life which I will never get back.

I don’t want him to just remember me as a working mom. I also want him to remember that I have taken the time to spend with him during his childhood years.

And when I ask about his day today during lunch and Michael said this,

“Mom, I feel so happy and lucky today. I love you, Mom”.

And that has made all the difference.

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