Be a Better Parent Challenge – Day 4 – Get down on their level

OK, yesterday’s Be a better parent challenge was No More “Good Job”. It was a great challenge and one that I will be more mindful of in the future. I have been working in education and with children for a long time now and I know this challenge is true. In fact, I used to be really good at coming up with new ingenious ways of saying “Good Job” but apparently with my own kids, I’ve become lazy. Yesterday instead of saying “Good Job”, I was a little more specific. For example:

“Awesome listening skills”, “I love the way you arranged your doll house. It looks amazing!” “Way to go, that bed looks like a professional did it!” “I love the way you helped your sister find her shoes!”

Just a few spins I put on it. I think it went pretty well. How did you do?

Today’s  Be a Better Parent Challenge ; Get Down on their Level . This is another fabulous idea. What is meant by get down on their level is pretty much what it sounds like.When you are speaking with your child, bend down, take a knee. You’ll establish eye contact and know they heard what you said. Kristen says that she asks for a “Yes, Mommy.” as an acknowledgment that they actually heard and understood what was said. I , personally, have been requesting a ,”Yes, Ma’am” only because I want these girls to learn respect for their elders at a young age, plus they know I am serious.  She also makes the point that  talking to someone’s head is not the smartest thing to do. I agree. It’s pretty much like talking to someone’s back. Who knows if the person you are talking to hears anything you say? Plus, how can you hold a child accountable for their actions if you are not even sure if they heard your instructions? So, today, I start bending down and taking a knee. No more talking to the tops of beautiful little heads. Eye contact , Mommies. It also shows respect for the person we are talking to. I mean if another adult didn’t make contact when talking to us we’d have a conniption fit. Let’s give it a try. I can’t wait. My girls will love it.

I think these challenges make perfect sense to us Mommies, we are just always so busy we never have the time to actually think about utilizing them. I think I might print the challenge out and share it with all my Mommy friends.Let me know how your challenge is going! Happy Mothering!