Being the mom of nine is absolutely as crazy as it sounds. You take the noise, the drama, the contention and you multiply it...by a gazillion! :)
OK...so a little exaggeration. But, you get the point...pure craziness at times.
I've been asked before how I do it. Well, the truth is, I do it just like any other mom. You take one little meltdown, one little heartache, one little last-minute homework project at a time.
In my home, there is no perfect parenting. There are perfect intentions, but no perfection anywhere else. I'm just like you, I scratch my head on a regular basis trying to figure out how to instruct, how to help, how to guide, and how to comfort.
I promise, I scratch my head OFTEN!
How do I handle the craziness? Well, Ricky has taught me some good ol' tricks as well. He did handle 6 of his own for a while!
(Have I told you he's wonderful?)
Just last night we had a little "hiccup" (my codeword for the "less than perfect" occurrences in my home).
Onto our hiccup...
Keely and Luke were arguing lovingly sharing their differences. So...they got the Ricky special.
Sit on the couch...and hold hands.
(my kids hate this when they are angry)
(hee hee hee...oh, the wicked laughter begins)
The best thing about this "consequence" is that no matter how determined they are to hold on to their frustration or anger, no child of mine has ever been able to make it last very long while they are holding the hand of their enemy. It's only a matter of time before the giggling ensues. With Keely and Luke, they were giggling and making faces before they even sat down.
I believe there's something magical about the human touch. I also believe that it's a critical part of our existence in this life. There's something magic that happens when they touch hands. They can no longer be mad. I have some very strong willed kids...and boy do they try. I can only remember a couple times when their stubbornness ALMOST won.
And then the big guns are brought in.
The Big Daddy Super Special!
You must kiss your enemy on the cheek.
Can I just say that we win every time?
AH-ha-ha-ha-hahhhh!
I love the magic of the human touch!
4 comments:
Oh I totally love that!! I'm going to remember it and use it on my kids haha!
I love this. I make mine hug and someone always ends up sneaking in a tickle. It's nice to see their anger is usually short-lived.
Hahaha (Wicked laugh right there with you!) I remember trying this with my kids after you mentioned it! Pure GENIUS!!!! Big daddy deserves a high five!
I only have one so far, but this is certainly a special worth remembering for when there are more in our family....I love that you are writing a blog!! I know that I caused more than my fair share of head scratching for you back in the day when you were kind enough to invite me into your home to help me. As difficult of a situation as it was, you taught me many things, and I miss sharing life with you. I hope to be able to come down and visit you and Keely someday - she has gotten so big!! - and meet the rest of your fun sounding family. :-)
Chrystal
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