No more smarty-pants remarks from us parents.
You know how you are so good at parenting other parents? You know what I mean. It's a gift everyone is born with. With little observation, one can easily spot all the parent crimes another parent commits. What most people don't realize is that "gift" usually doesn't work on themselves. People go along all day pointing out problems in others without noticing their kid is butt naked in the street drinking dish soap from the bottle.
****SPEAKING OF WHICH...while I just wrote that last part Lauren had gotten a hold of a permanent marker and was coloring the kitchen cabinets pink. So yep. ****
Well, Dave and I turned our attention to our own parenting style and we found only one thing we need work on. Because we are nearly perfect.
And this is what we need to work on:
Offering advice instead of encouragement.
I'm really bad at this. I read somewhere that parents who are always lecturing undermine their child's ability to gain confidence in making his or her own decisions. So, I hope you never hear me or Dave say things like "Well, this is what happens when...." or "I told you not to...." or "Next time can we just..." 'Cause really, do you like it when people say things like this to you? No! It's super annoying and absolutely not helpful! Of course there are ways to talk with children in a loving way, but it doesn't have to involve belittling them or their decisions.
By the way, our code word is "Aflac." You can say that to either one of us if you catch using those naughty parent phrases. Then you can find a super long and thin reed and whip our wrists.
Dave and Lindsey Goal number 2:
Stop being lazy bums. Our new lives will go as follows:
Get up at 5:30.
Dave runs around our fake lake.
Lindsey does a workout video. Because running is evil.
Cold shower.
Kids wake up.
Do stuff during the day.
Put kids to bed.
Watch Parks and Rec. Because laughing is a great de-stressor.
Go to bed by 9:30-10pm.
This is really hard for me. I'm even doing exercise hypnosis to make me like it. Not kidding.
It must be working because today was our 5th day!
To finish, please enjoy a few de-stressing videos yourself!
