What Kids & Dogs Have in Common

This is Dixie. Or, as I like to say, my favorite child.

We adopted her from a rescue shelter in our area. When we brought her home we thought she was a full yellow Labrador.

As she grew, we saw other traits in her personality that weren’t all lab—and her features began to change, too. We wondered, What breed is she?

It was a friend who figured it out. “She’s definitely lab but she’s Jack Russell Terrier, too.” Our vet confirmed she was right.

For those of you who know about Jack Russell’s—they’re an overactive breed that needs lots of exercise and attention. Since I struggle with exercise myself, it wasn’t a breed I would actively seek to own.

       Dixie was laying on her bed by the fireplace when my son came down the stairs. Immediately alert and as excited as a child on Christmas morning, she jumped all over David like she hadn’t seen him in years. “Why does she always have to act like this?” He grumbled.

Son, she can’t help it, it’s how God wired her. Jack Russell’s aren’t only active but they’re also known for being very smart. Thankfully, there is still quite a bit of lab in her so her Jack Russell outbursts are tempered. It got me to thinking; my kids are a lot like my dog. 

Each one is wired with specific traits.

• Meghan enjoys her solitude. As a little girl she loved to sit in her bedroom and play with her Barbie’s or read and write for hours. Today, at the age of twenty-three, she’s in New York—alone on vacation. (My prayer life is kicked up a notch this week.) She still loves to read and write. It’s how God wired her. She graduated college with an English degree and this year she’ll be teaching her first college course on how to write short stories.
• David is extremely social. He is energized by people. He also was that child who lived for excitement and thrills and had the attention span of a gnat. I have quite a few grey hairs with his name on them. As a child his two greatest loves were hunting for bugs and catching animals for a closer look. Because of him, I’ve seen mice, baby coyotes, birds, and even a mama-rattlesnake up close. It’s how God wired him. Today, he’s twenty years old and in college pursuing veterinary medicine. His focus is something he struggles with—even today. And, that love of thrills and excitement? He’s planning to skydive on his twenty-first birthday.
• Grace loves to be around children.  She was two years old when her baby brother Samuel came along. Months before his arrival I’d told my little girl that he would be her baby, too. She took my words to heart and called him, “My Samuel-baby.” She’s mothered him ever since. (Much to his dislike.) Grace’s personality has always been caring and nurturing. It’s how God wired her. Today, she’s fifteen years old and serves in children ministry, her babysitting calendar is full and her business card tagline reads, ‘Because every child needs a little Grace’. She’s thinking seriously about becoming a nurse one day.
• Samuel is alot like his dad. He’s our youngest and at the age of thirteen, if I were one to believe in aliens I’d believe I was just a pod for my son. He’s a carbon copy of his father. My son thinks logically and doesn’t need the social interaction his big brother does. While I don’t know exactly what my thirteen year old son will grow up to do or be, I can see the analytical mind of his dad in him and a genetic need for order and organization in his day to day routine. (Definitely a gift of DNA handed down by his father.) It’s how God wired him.

Pay attention to your kids. Even at a very young age their personality can tell you alot about the adult they will be. God’s word says He knew all of us even before we were born. That means, He isn’t surprised by our personalities, either.

We can help fine tune how God made our children so they have an easier time succeeding as adults. But, I’m pretty sure you can never remove how God wired them. As moms, our job is to understand who our children were created to be and gently guide them towards the path God has for them.