...And Doggone it, I Can Be a Better Parent!

I keep trying to make changes to the way I view and approach the kids, sometimes I do better than others. It's so hard to focus on the change I want to be and keep my head right so I can remain calm in the inevitable chaos that is life with kids. Maybe I should make a short video reminding myself what I (at times) know about my life and my role in these little people's lives.

Would be nice to be reminded about the mirrors our kids are to us, the promises I've made to myself about "being there" and fully engaged, how I need to be thinking on the level of reducing volume and yelling, providing positive reinforcement and not becoming a "No" parent. Boundaries are necessary, schedules are flexible, behavior swings and moods come and go like the wind so don't get so worked up because J Bean is going ballistic. Present what I want to receive and learn to listen to those little people. Giving them a strong voice and the confidence to know others will listen to them (no matter how silly or unimportant something may seem) will lead to the adults I am trying to raise. I am not working to raise robots who respond to me immediately out of fear and follow orders to the letter, but rather I'm  hoping to have a hand in bringing out the successful, happy, fully functioning, confident and independent adults I know they can be.

These are the thoughts I have in the still of the night when no one is throwing food at me, whining, crying and litigating everything I say. I've got to figure out a way to communicate these thoughts to "morning me" first thing and remind me of what I know. Morning Me is always ticked that I don't do the dishes, so maybe I should start there and loosen his load a little. Better yet, maybe I/he can start reciting this to myself in the mirror every morning  (Stuart Smalley style).