Mommy and Me CHALLENGE Day 1

I'm hosting a challenge on Facebook that encourages parents to be more "present" with their child(ren).

It's almost selfish of me, because it's something I struggle with, and that's why I chose to do the group.

Today was Day 1 and here is the challenge I put forth for the members of the group:

Day 1

YES vs NO

These two words are short, but have much power!

If you had to answer your child with one of these words, which would you say you use the MOST?

Sadly, I use NO too often.

I’m not talking about the days when I tell my kid “No, you can’t have candy for breakfast” or “No, you may not climb on the bookshelf, that’s not safe”.

Obviously, “no” is a word that is going to be used a lot in the home with small children. What I’m referring to is the times when my kid asks for something innocent, at a slightly inconvenient time, and I promptly shut them down without even thinking about it.

Like the day when we pulled into our apartment complex and my son asked for his window to be rolled down. We still had a minute or two of driving before we reached our home, and yet I immediately said “no” without even considering it. What’s so wrong about rolling his window down for two minutes? It would be a minor inconvenience to push the “down” button slightly to my left for a grand total of ten seconds now, and then ten more seconds in a few minutes when we pulled up to our house. Why did that need to be a “no”? The truth is, it didn’t.

Sometimes I catch myself, and I take back my hasty “No” and respond with a “Yes” or a “Sure, why not”. Sometimes I pause for the 16 seconds it requires to take a peek at the world through the lens of a 3 year old; a little guy who just wants to feel the wind on his face, and feel like a big-boy because he can reach his fingers out the window when it’s down. Sometimes I need to remember that there are a thousand good reasons that I must tell my boy “No” everyday, so I don’t need to seize the opportunity when it’s not necessary. In fact, I need to search for the chances to tell him “Yes”, and give him that little bit of pleasure as he feels the wind on his face and touches the sky with his finger tips.

Sometimes I need to stop being annoyed by his constant questions, and just say “Yes” whenever I can. Because we all know those chances aren’t always as prevalent as the chance to say “No”.

YOUR CHALLENGE for today: During TWO circumstances where you would normally say No, I want you to say YES.

Yes, I will read you a story. Yes, I will get down on the floor and play legos/trains/a puzzle with you. Yes, you may go outside in the cold weather (as long as you have a jacket on wink emoticon ). Yes, I will answer your question.
Instead of “In just a second, honey” or “Right after I finish up here” or “I’m very busy right now, maybe a bit later”. Let’s try, “Yes, right now”.
Then put down the phone, ignore the piles of washing, forget about the emails, or the floor that needs to be swept, or the trash that needs to be taken out, and just be WITH your child.

All those other things will wait.
Our children may not.
Show them they matter.
Be available.

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So, if you're up for the challenge, try saying YES more often today! <3
And if you'd like to join the group, you can join here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1528966887365621/