Moms Make Mistakes, Too

From the time of infancy, we work to teach our kids what’s right and wrong and to learn from our mistakes.

“Don’t do this… don’t do that… don’t ride the dog like a horse.” (Maybe that last one is only at my house).

Our kids pick up pretty early on when they are doing something right or wrong. We also do our best to teach them how to own their mistakes and ask for forgiveness even when it may seem difficult or impossible to do.

I still won’t forget a time when I was a child and I broke a neighbor’s expensive toy. I had to write a letter to the neighbor asking for forgiveness. At the time, it hurt a lot worse to own up to my mistake and ask for forgiveness than a lot of other things I had encountered in my few years on Earth.

So what happens as adults, more particularly when we’re a mom, and we make mistakes?

We should own it, and show our kids that moms make mistakes, too. 

It can be something as simple as burning the toast or forgetting to walk out the door with an important item.

Or it could be larger – like yelling when we didn’t mean to or doing something accidentally that emotionally hurt our children.

No matter how large or small the mistake, it’s important to show our kids that forgiveness is an option and should be utilized.

Children have an amazing way to forgive. They understand that mistakes happen but still see us moms as superheroes. We make a mistake and they find a way to forgive us when we ask for it. 

That may seem like the hardest part, though. Asking for forgiveness from a child who loves you unconditionally. 

But children do forgive you when you get it wrong, from my experiences and talking with other moms. It’s truly amazing how they don’t hold onto mistakes like we, as adults, can sometimes do. No matter how large the mistake might seem to be, if you can show your child that you’re remorseful and ask for their forgiveness, they usually will do it with open arms.

That’s why we, as moms, need to be gentle with ourselves and others. We’re not invincible to mistakes as much as we would like to be. By giving grace to ourselves, we are showing our children that it’s OK to sometimes make mistakes, and what’s important is to ask for forgiveness.