We went to the zoo today with some of Tanner's friends...Makalee & Reighanne. It was a great day for it since it was a little overcast this morning and not blazing hot. It was humid though so it was a little sticky...but what else can you expect in South Texas? We told Tanner last night that we would be going to the zoo...so he woke up at 6:30 this morning ready to go!! And he must have been dreaming about it, because the first thing he was talking about this morning was the alligators and how daddy was swimming with them. And we talked about the alligators all the way in the car...and then of course we never saw them once we got there! But we did see a lot of other animals and the lions even put on a roaring display for us.
Whenever I do outings like this with Tanner, it just shows me that I have some work to do in the obedience department. Tanner does not respond to "Stop" near as quickly as I would like. In fact, he is displaying selective hearing loss at a very early age! I find myself having to say his name several times before he acknowledges me. Of course, when I pull him aside and we talk about listening to Mommy, he very sweetly responds with "yes mommy". But then five minutes later, we go through it all over again. UUUGGGHHH!! There are days when I feel like a horrible mother, but I know that consistency is the key and I need to really work with him every day in every situation. It is so easy to just get lazy sometimes and not want to address bad behavior...the classic "ignore it and it will go away" mentality. But as we all know, that does not work. In fact during one of those moments today when I was getting very frustrated with how slowly Tanner was obeying me...I felt like God gently reminded me of how often I am slow to obey Him. I look for every excuse in the book to rationalize away what I feel God is telling me to do. Or I keep myself so busy that I don't have to stop and actually listen to what God is trying to tell me. Apparently, immediate obedience is hard for 2 year olds and 32 year olds!! :) However, the big picture is that I am trying to teach Tanner obedience because I love him and want what is best for him. I am not simply trying to torture him and keep him from having any fun. And the same is true for God...He knows what is best for us even when we don't understand! And we don't need to understand...we just need to obey! Did you hear that Tanner???!!!
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