fathers

"fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord."

Ephesians 6:4

so, having a nearly two year old has got me thinking about this verse lately. everything seems to exasperate (1. to make very angry or impatient; annoy greatly. 2. to increase intensity of) her these days. it doesn't take much and she is on the floor arm and legs flying, making noise none of us would have thought could come from such a beautiful little girl. what happens to them at these moments and what they are really thinking we will never know but how we cope with them we can talk about. 

i guess the first part about not exasperating makes me think about her personality. maybe she just doesn't like certain things. things like tomatoes, putting clothes on and having the windows down in the car. i don't like peas or carrots very well and i really don't like cleaning the shower. although as an adult i try not to throw myself on the floor as much as she does, it does make me stop and think about her and her little personality. am i exasperating her when i force her to do something she really doesn't like? please feel free to comment here with advice help or funny stories of your own. 

the second part about training and instruction makes me think about how some of those thing she doesn't like to do maybe have to be forced just because they are important to life and living. (i.e., cleaning the shower, yuck!)  again feel free to comment! 

one last point, josh was not trying to exasperate her in this picture. she just really needed a nap and was on her way shortly after the photo was taken. thought it was cute though!