Yesterday after an all-day 4H Cloverbud dude ranch experience, Megan said, “Mom, I am now totally interested in horses.” _____ This morning, Timmy crawled in bed with us at 6 a.m. He slid in between us and pulled up the covers. Tim: Mom? (I pretended I was asleep) Dad? Eric: What, bud? Tim: Was...
Tag: parenting
The Sounds of Summer
Timmy sings, random songs from down the hall. (This is his current fave.) Alex talks, sharing every bit of his encyclopedic knowledge of Pokemon. Erin asks, hoping for connection and a chance to go to the pool. Megan laughs, loud and full and sometimes with a snort at the end. There are knocks...
Best Thing for Kids
We try very hard not to overschedule ourselves. My general rule is that the kids can do two things at once, which seems to make things manageable. So we do Cub Scouts, Girl Scouts, sports, and other random activities, too. But halfway through our second year, I’m absolutely certain that 4H is one of the...
Parenting Process
What I learned in June #1: I have to encourage my children to focus on the process, not the end goal. It sounds so simple, but it’s not. Not really. Because, if I’m honest, I do not encourage my kids to focus on the process; what they mostly hear from me is that the...
The 4-Step Apology
Making an apology isn’t easy, but it’s important. It’s how we maintain our connection to those we love. But, as with anything worth doing, there is a right way (and a wrong way) to do it. Two Problems In my house, apologies usually sound like one child stage-whispering “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry”...