By Cory Seidel
Well, our taxes are in so we can get back to other things that have taken the back seat, including our blog posts. Sorry for the absence.
Ana was recently away for five days in Amarillo Texas learning how to talk with the media (for our book) so I was playing Mr. Mom. It was good bonding time for Dad and the kids. It was spring break as well, so I had all four kids all day long.
I worked to emphasize all the positive attitude things that we do at our house, and reminded the kids that I want to give them lots of stars for being nice to each other. It worked great initially and they were all very well behaved and nice to each other. As the day wore on, however, the sibling bickering and fighting began to increase. I noticed that my tolerance began to wane as well as the time passed. It is interesting that as my patience went down, their bickering went up!
It actually makes perfect sense that the bickering and fighting increased. The kids were reflecting my thoughts and feelings. It may have started with a small incident between the kids, but as my anger increased, my thoughts and feelings were transmitted to them and they became more angry with each other.
Because of the personal growth work Anamarie and I have been doing, I would catch myself and work to bring back a calm, helpful attitude for myself so that could be reflected in the kids. Was I perfect with making that happen? Nope. I was successful sometimes, but other times I wasn’t able to make the switch within myself.
I have to admit that for the most part, I think I did pretty well. I’m on this parenting journey like the rest of you. I work to do things better all the time. I don’t remember who said it, but there is a great affirmation that I like to use and it goes like this… “Day by day, in every way, I am getting better and better.” I like this affirmation because we aren’t perfect, but if we work to be a little better every day, we will get better and better all the time. There may be some ups and downs, but as a whole, if we make ourselves a little better each day, our life, and our interactions with our kids, will get better and better.
Helping you Parent OutLoud
Because what you say matters!
Blessings.
