A couple of years ago we were down in Utah for Martell and Katie's wedding, and we were visiting with Grandma and Grandpa. David asked them what advice they had on raising children since they'd done such a good job with their family. Grandma said that if you don't have a good reason to tell your children no, tell them yes.
That advice has really stuck with me, and I try to do that with my kids. There's a lot of times as a parent when my kids' requests are inconvenient, or I'm tired, or I know it's going to make a huge mess. Those are the times I remember Grandma's advice, and so I do it anyway.
Grandma has a lot of wisdom, and after practicing her advice I can see why she said that. I find that my kids are happier, they're spending less time watching TV, and I'm spending more time with them. They also respond better when I say no, because I try to say yes as often as I can.
Yesterday Jacob asked me first thing in the morning if we could make cookies with the cookie cutters that day. My first thought was that it was going to be a huge mess, but then I remembered Grandma and so I told him we could. Yes, it was a huge mess, but the kids had a wonderful time and I had a fun time watching their happy faces and having time to interact with them.
Thank you Grandma for such wise advice.
5 comments:
That is really good advice. I will try to remember that in the future,too.
Tracie, I've heard that advice before, though not from Grandma. It's good advice and I'm glad for the reminder. Looks like lots of fun!
I love that. Thank you for sharing, Tracy!
Thank you for posting that, it really is great advice! We are so lucky to have such a great example in our lives.
My parents have told me several times that advice and it was so good to hear it again! Thanks for sharing! I need to practice that more often!
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