So cute… and fruit-snack free (here)

Like most moms, I try to choose my words carefully around my little ones. Cuss words are obviously a “no-no” as well as anything that I would not want them repeating at school or to the super nice old lady that lives next door.

But what about the things that we say as parents that are not necessarily bad, but still make us cringe? If I replayed everything that I said in a day, my guess is that I’d hear a lot of things that would make me cover my ears in parental embarrassment.

Here are my top three examples:

1. When you are an adult, you can do that. So basically… eating a handful of Starbursts for breakfast is something that will magically be acceptable once my children are over the age of 18? Am I really unable to come up with anything better than the lame old “once you are grown up” excuse when I do something I would never let them do?

2. Stop acting like a baby. Okay, so maybe it can be aggravating when kids who are preschool age or pushing it have a melt down because they have a blue plate and really wanted green instead. I will admit that telling them not to act like a baby is a last resort. I try reasoning first. Then I move to “that’s enough” — as if the words will suddenly cause the meltdown to cease. When all else fails, I resort to name-calling. So very mature of me. I suppose they can do the same thing when they are adults.

3. If you (fill in the blank), you can have some fruit snacks. Ahhhh, good old fashioned bribery. Sometimes I feel like it’s the only weapon I’ve got left in my parental persuasion arsenal. Two napping girls who hate to be awoken, but we need to pick up brother from preschool in ten minutes? No worries. A power-pack of princess-shaped sugar bites should perk them right up. Had a tight deadline, so you let the kiddos completed destroy their toy closet because they were happy and not killing each other? Lego pieces everywhere… books strewn across the room… little ripped up pieces of paper that you are too afraid to ask the origin of??? Never fear. Whining wee ones who claim to be “too tired” to clean up quickly change their tune once they have the promise of artificial fruity goodness within reach.

I wish that I was the type of mom who never said these things — that I was always wise, always patient, always in control of my words. I’m a work in progress and I think my kids realize that. I hope my kids realize that.

Anyone else care to share?

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Category: Moms

Tags: Katie