LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – “He would say when something bad happens, look for the helpers. Even when very bad things happen, there are people helping.”
Vic Snyder is a known name in Arkansas, but the former congressman’s wife, Betsy, has also had quite the career — recently adding published author to her resume.
Stepping on Cheerios is something parents of toddlers know all too well. It’s also the title of Betsy Singleton’s Snyder’s first book, documenting her journey as a pastor, wife and mother of four — having her first child at 45, and then finding out she was pregnant with triplets at the age of 47.
“I cried. I cried for a week,” Betsy Singleton Snyder, author of “Stepping on Cheerios,” said.
She suffered heart failure after delivering the triplets.
“It was scary,” Betsy recounted.
But now, years later, her four boys are now 10 and 8-years-old. She’s healthy, happy, and she’s sharing the real and raw journey along the way.
“The book is going through the process of parenthood even when it’s so crazy and messy,” Betsy said.
Giving advice to parents of little ones to be present and pay attention.
“Whether they’re riding a bike, swimming… observe them and comment. How was it? What was the experience? You would be shocked what that does for a child,” Betsy said.
And the challenges that families face today.
“The disctractions we all seem to have on our phones,” Betsy said. “I try to talk about being in the moment with your kids because we are so busy.”
She also ministers to parents on how to talk to children when bad things happen, using Mr. Rogers as an example.
“He would say when something bad happens, look for the helpers. Even when very bad things happen, there are people helping.”
Betsy is now Pastor of Preaching and Missions at Pulaski Heights United Methodist in Little Rock.
She and her husband — former U.S. Representative Dr. Vic Snyder — have a passion to help others. Her book is just one way she hopes to help parents learn to juggle working and raising kids, taking a humble and humorous look at the struggles and joys of stepping on cheerios.
The book “Stepping on Cheerios: Finding God in the Chaos and Clutter in Life” is available on Amazon, at Target and at Barnes & Noble.
