Tuesday, September 1, 2009

An Ounce of Prevention

is worth a pound of cure!

You can catch more flies with honey than with vinegar!

Both of these sayings can apply to raising children, especially if you have one who is a little less cheerful than the other children. I am not naming names, but I have one of those.

About the sayings. my children respond much better to positive interaction than with corrective measures, when it comes to the grumpies. Meaning, all of the punishments/consequences I have applied to this certain child over the years for their moodiness really has not seemed to work. I guess you cannot discipline a child into being happy! But, when I can take and make the time to interact with them with a positive attitude, praising every single step in the right (pleasant) direction, the outcome is much more favorable. Of course this takes much more effort on my part. I tend to be a drill sargent parent. Do this. Go there. Pick up this. When I remember to slow down, to actually talk to my children instead of at them, everyone is happier.....especially the grumpy child.

When I have the opportunity to spend one on one time with my children, especially a grumpy child, they are different children. In fact, the alone time with them serves as an immunization of sorts. The more time I spend with them individually, the better they behave and the more self-control they have the rest of the day. Hence, the ounce of prevention saying. Realistically, I don't spend enough of this alone time with each child. I am now seeing the direct benefit of that time though, and I am purposing to make that time happen.

4 comments:

  1. Thanks Roan, I really needed this this morning. Have a wonderful day- Laura

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  2. Well, I AM naming names...EMILY! I would be very interested to hear what you have to say about toddlers who hit and are just plain rough. Have you had one of those? And do they tend to grow out of it as they become older and more aware of their actions(please say YES!)?

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  3. Roan, I had some thoughts along these lines yesterday as I was running with Lia. I hope to blog about my insights, too. Thanks for sharing!

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  4. Roan, I really needed to hear that reminder! I so tend to do the same thing with my kids!!

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