Hello and welcome Friday YAY!!!! I love the weekends....especially this weekend. We are getting ready to take our family vacation and the excitement in our house is through the roof! I will be back to blogging when we return. I am letting this vacation be the start of something new...when we are supposed to be relaxing as a family that is exactly what we will do. No work, no computers, no answering emails you get the point. We don't have enough days like that, I don't know too many families that do. Don't get me wrong, I love my smartphone and all that it does. I love having everything at my disposal when I need it. WHEN I NEED IT is the main point. I certainly will not need it on this vacation, so unless it is an emergency I am not going answer my phone. Let's see if my husband can stick to the same plan!
So, this week my Fabulous Friday find is a website that I really love as a parent. It is
www.parentingsimply.com
As the name states it is about keeping parenting simple and going back to the basics. It's a wonderful resource and is loaded with information. They have so many helpful articles and videos for parents of any stage from infancy to teens to young adults. I signed up for their blog by email and look forward to getting a daily tip on being a parent. Their philosophy is to follow your instincts as a parent and go with it. I love that. So many times as parents we second guess our choices because of various reasons. If only we went with our first instinct (most of the time) everything would be just fine.
One of my favorite things about the website is they give helpful ways to teach kids basics like manners and being thankful etc. I really enjoyed the article about How to teach Gratitude. It was aimed toward older kids, but I was able to take some tips from it as well. This is something that we are working on as a family. I want my girls to have nice things as does any parent, but most of all I want them to be thankful for what we have (even if it isn't the top brand etc.). There is so much pressure today to have this game or that brand of clothing. It has probably always been that way, but I never realized until I became the person purchasing items. I see it as young as Elementary school. My daughter comes home and tells me about a certain shoe "all" the girls have except her (yeah I don't think so). To her it may seem that way, but as a parent we know it isn't true.
Gratitude is difficult sometimes. It almost seems like it should be innate , but we know it isn't. We've all had that moment that our child has thrown a fit because they HAVE to have that certain toy and we are the worst parents because we won't buy it, we never get them anything blah, blah, blah....yeah we've all been there thinking, "Are you kidding me, I would give you the shirt on my back you ungrateful little thing." AHH I do not like those moments at all. I despise when I hear or see my children feeling "entitled." It REALLY drives me crazy. I do not want them to grow up thinking they "deserve" certain things. I want to teach them they need to work for what they will have in life and be thankful and grateful for all the blessings.
Sometimes it is as simple as not giving that cup of orange juice until my daughter can say (on her own) please and thank you. Yes, when they are young we need to remind them to say these things on a regular basis. As they get older, they should be expected to do it without any reminders. If they hear it from you on a regular basis it will become what they know. I also think it is important to show kids that we care for folks that have less than we do. As a family you can volunteer at a soup kitchen (I want to do this with my oldest very soon), you can donate items to GoodWill or other foundations, you can volunteer at your church etc. The possibilities are endless. My girls sometimes get upset when we take their things to GoodWill and I know it is hard, but it's so important for them to participate. We go through our bookshelves often and donate books to a local school. My girls have so many books they could open a library. We love books and reading together, but I want them to share that love with others. These are the little things that hopefully will stick in their brains and teach them gratitude.
So good luck with your parenting journey. It is not easy and sometimes we need to read or watch a video to see that we are not the only family out there going through this or that.
www.parentingsimply.com
is a website full of great tips. I hope that you take the time to check them out. Sign up for their blog and you'll be surprised at how many of the scenarios relate to your family. I wish you and yours a very blessed weekend. I'll see ya'll in about two weeks. Vacation here we come!!!
If you want children to keep their feet on the ground, put some responsibility on their shoulders. ~ Abigail Van Buren
So, this week my Fabulous Friday find is a website that I really love as a parent. It is
www.parentingsimply.com
As the name states it is about keeping parenting simple and going back to the basics. It's a wonderful resource and is loaded with information. They have so many helpful articles and videos for parents of any stage from infancy to teens to young adults. I signed up for their blog by email and look forward to getting a daily tip on being a parent. Their philosophy is to follow your instincts as a parent and go with it. I love that. So many times as parents we second guess our choices because of various reasons. If only we went with our first instinct (most of the time) everything would be just fine.
One of my favorite things about the website is they give helpful ways to teach kids basics like manners and being thankful etc. I really enjoyed the article about How to teach Gratitude. It was aimed toward older kids, but I was able to take some tips from it as well. This is something that we are working on as a family. I want my girls to have nice things as does any parent, but most of all I want them to be thankful for what we have (even if it isn't the top brand etc.). There is so much pressure today to have this game or that brand of clothing. It has probably always been that way, but I never realized until I became the person purchasing items. I see it as young as Elementary school. My daughter comes home and tells me about a certain shoe "all" the girls have except her (yeah I don't think so). To her it may seem that way, but as a parent we know it isn't true.
Gratitude is difficult sometimes. It almost seems like it should be innate , but we know it isn't. We've all had that moment that our child has thrown a fit because they HAVE to have that certain toy and we are the worst parents because we won't buy it, we never get them anything blah, blah, blah....yeah we've all been there thinking, "Are you kidding me, I would give you the shirt on my back you ungrateful little thing." AHH I do not like those moments at all. I despise when I hear or see my children feeling "entitled." It REALLY drives me crazy. I do not want them to grow up thinking they "deserve" certain things. I want to teach them they need to work for what they will have in life and be thankful and grateful for all the blessings.
Sometimes it is as simple as not giving that cup of orange juice until my daughter can say (on her own) please and thank you. Yes, when they are young we need to remind them to say these things on a regular basis. As they get older, they should be expected to do it without any reminders. If they hear it from you on a regular basis it will become what they know. I also think it is important to show kids that we care for folks that have less than we do. As a family you can volunteer at a soup kitchen (I want to do this with my oldest very soon), you can donate items to GoodWill or other foundations, you can volunteer at your church etc. The possibilities are endless. My girls sometimes get upset when we take their things to GoodWill and I know it is hard, but it's so important for them to participate. We go through our bookshelves often and donate books to a local school. My girls have so many books they could open a library. We love books and reading together, but I want them to share that love with others. These are the little things that hopefully will stick in their brains and teach them gratitude.
So good luck with your parenting journey. It is not easy and sometimes we need to read or watch a video to see that we are not the only family out there going through this or that.
www.parentingsimply.com
is a website full of great tips. I hope that you take the time to check them out. Sign up for their blog and you'll be surprised at how many of the scenarios relate to your family. I wish you and yours a very blessed weekend. I'll see ya'll in about two weeks. Vacation here we come!!!
If you want children to keep their feet on the ground, put some responsibility on their shoulders. ~ Abigail Van Buren