NO PARENT TRIES to raise a child incapable of doing for him or herself, yet after years of doing your child’s laundry, making your child’s breakfast, lunch, dinner, and bed, your child will wake up and wonder “Doesn’t my Mom or Dad think I can do it?” or even worse, ” I can’t do it as well as my Mom or Dad, so I won’t try.” The fastest and easiest way to raise children who are self directed, self sufficient, and self confident, is to show them how, and then let them DO for themselves. They will thrive with your love, guidance, and direction. I promise!
As a mom, the operational and logistical tasks of keeping your home and family organized and running smoothly most likely rests on your shoulders.
To be more successful, you need to become more efficient and effective with managing the daily responsibilities so you can spend more time on you, your partner and your kids.
The following posts will help you Develop Systems & Routines To Become More Efficient.
EMBRACE PARENTHOOD LIKE you’ve never embraced it before. Your dear little ones will grow up–sooner than you think. Life will never be like it is today. For many of you, that’s a relief–I know, yet one day you will have a pristine kitchen, you will have a clean car, and you will have plenty of time to make four course meals. And it won’t matter to you! You will long for the mess, long for those crazy-making moments in the morning and evening, and yearn for art work to walk in the door each afternoon. Sure Life is crazy. It’s time to own it and make it your crazy.
LIMIT YOUR CHILD’S SCREEN TIME. When you limit it, you are freeing up precious time that your child can relax, reconnect with siblings, be creative, read or engage in enriching activities. A typical child spends more that 1680 minutes per week in front of the TV and yet only three and a half minutes in meaningful conversation with a parent. Eliminate the distractions in your home and you will see how much easier it is to keep your kids Happy, Healthy, Safe, and Cozy. You’ll be amazed at all of the activities happening around you–all because those little boxes have been put out of business. You can absolutely do it!
YOUR CHILDREN CRAVE YOUR ATTENTION AND THEY”LL DO MOST ANYTHING TO GET IT. If it means fighting with siblings, whining, yelling at you, or disagreeing with every word out of your mouth, they’re learning how to get what they need or want. If yelling at you worked in the past, guess what? Your clever child is going to do it again, and again, and again. The ticket to eliminating unacceptable behaviors and encouraging cooperation is to praise healthy and acceptable behaviors. Recognize cooperation and team work and give your kids what they want–ATTENTION–POSITIVE PRAISE. “You boys had so much fun playing, good for you!” or “I like the way you helped mom unload the groceries. What a help!” or “You guys are a great team, I like the way you helped your brother with his shoes,” etc. You can never offer enough genuine praise. Your kids will thrive and so will you. You can absolutely do it!
TREAT YOUR DAUGHTERS THE SAME WAY YOU TREAT YOUR SONS. When you send the message that their gender does not determine their value, success, or happiness, your kids will grow up believing that it’s their abilities that matter, not whether they are a boy or girl. Boys cry, girls run fast, boys like pink, girls can lift heavy objects, boys enjoy cooking, girls like blue, and the list goes on and on. Praise creativity, curiosity, strength, compassion, and sensitivity. Allow your child’s interests and passions to determine their journey, not society’s perceptions of what success looks like for a boy or girl. Your kids are so much more than that!
”SELL THE DREAM!” If you want your kids to live, a happy, healthy, joy-filled life, you need to live it first. Live it and then talk about it. Share why your morning or evening run is so important to you? Why do you hire a sitter to make it happen? Tell your kids how great it feels to exercise and sweat for reasons other than chasing after them at the park. Why do you go out on dates with your spouse/partner or out with friends? Explain that those relationships are important and make you happy –Spending time and energy to nurture and grow them is healthy and smart. Your kids are watching you live your life and learning what is important, who is important, and how you honor those things. “LIVE THE LIFE YOU WANT YOUR KIDS TO LIVE!”
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