Tuesday, May 7, 2013

Parenting idea: A child's "pro's" list


I talked yesterday about my struggle to keep grace when life seems overwhelming and our "good behavior notebook" that came out of it. Well, here's something else I did during this roller coaster that I think might help someone else.

Brady came home very mopey one day during a stretch of difficult days. "I have a hard time making good choices," he said and then mumbled about not thinking he was good at anything.

Oh my. 

I don't ever want that. A little healthy remorse can help anyone do better next time, but I don't want him to beat up on himself. I want him to keep control and work harder and know when he's done wrong, but I do not want it to ever break his spirit because he has a beautiful, vibrant, loving spirit.

Perhaps my greatest charge as a parent is to protect that - from others, from myself and from life in general.

So that night I made a quick list of all the good qualities I could think of about him, which were numerous! Then I read them to him and we keep it in his room. It is a tangible reminder of his strengths and good traits.

It's something to show him how I see him, even if I'm upset or enforcing consequences. He can always look at that and remember.

I hope he will always know I am his biggest champion and my hope is to develop the best in him, because there's so much there to work with.

A wonderful little lady in town has told me she thinks Brady will do great things, that one day the challenges will be worth it. I sure do think she's right with all my heart. 

2 comments:

  1. Awesome post, as I think a relationship between parents and children should be like friends. So that they can share their good and bad with you.
    I'm posting a similar article link, 8 Things Strong Mothers Teach Their Daughters

    ReplyDelete

I truly enjoy your comments and love to interact. Be sure to check the "notify me" box below to see new comments and replies to your comment! Thank you!

Blog Archive

Popular Posts