by: Nicky Vanvalkenburgh
Have you ever seen parents discipline their children in public? I recently saw a mother spank her child at the bank. Unfortunately, the mother was treating her little girl like a punching bag.
The child was probably five or six years old, and was intrigued by the bank?s ?Take one!? brochures. When the child took one, her mother slapped her hand. The girl began crying. She received another slap. ?You be quiet!? the mother growled. The child sat down on the bank?s sofa. She crossed her legs, Indian style. Oops, her feet touched the sofa. Whack! By the time they marched out of the bank, that mother had slapped her child at least 20 times.
Was that necessary? I don?t think so. Children often make mistakes because they?re immature or don?t know better.
They?re kids, and they?re not as sophisticated as adults. They?re also creatures of wonder and awe.
I can?t remember the last time I got excited about getting a free lollypop at the bank. Candy isn?t something that I jump up and down about. Children are completely different. When the teller handed that child a lollypop, her eyes sparkled with delight. Why couldn?t that mother be gentle with her daughter, and loosen up a bit? Being overly strict and rigid was making both of them miserable.
Watching the parent at the bank made me think about my own disciplinary style.
Do I unintentionally respond to my children like that mother did? out of anger, stress and frustration?
I must be patient with my kids, and allow them to make mistakes. They don?t do things on cue. They don?t always listen. Sometimes, they are downright sassy or disobedient.
Most of the time, it?s a matter of immaturity. They must learn what it means to be polite, respectful, self-controlled, and well-behaved. Most of the time, they?re just being children.
Isn?t it funny how kids are oblivious to external cues? Any adult in that little girl?s situation would think, ?I need to keep my mouth shut. I better keep a low profile. My Mom is getting irritated, so I better be as quiet as I possibly can be.?
What seems logical to adults is often oblivious to kids. It?s as remote to them as the planet Mars. Most of the time, they don?t have a clue about the way adults think or feel. It is hard for them to put themselves in our shoes.
I remember being pregnant with my second child. My belly was so big that I could hardly see my feet. I felt the baby?s little heels pressing against my abdomen, which made it hard to breathe. It was a real challenge walking out of the grocery store with loaded plastic bags and a preschooler in tow. Even so, my preschooler would ask, ?Momma, will you carry me??
My preschooler, God bless him, was oblivious to the fact that I was huffing and puffing to make it to the car. The last thing that I could do is carry him on my hip.
It?s times like these that I have to laugh. This is my life, and it is funny. It is absurd, ridiculous and wonderful. I can?t take myself too seriously. Life is too short for that. As my eyes roll to the sky, I laugh and smile. I can?t let the little guy get me down. He?s just being a child. And I have the privilege of being his Mom.
About The Author
Nicky Vanvalkenburgh writes about practical coping strategies for empowered living. Check out her website at http://www.20minutestolessstress.com/.
|
Trade Show Marketers: How To Make Attendees Willingly Rush to Your Booth
Trade Show Marketers: How To Make Attendees Willingly Rush to Your Booth
by: Patty Stripes
Trade show booths are a lot like cars.
They all basically do the same thing:
they take you from point A to point B.
Some do it in sleek, chic manner, others with zip and zing, and sill others do it more by just sort of lumbering along.
And when it comes to your trade show booth, the last thing you want to do is lumber along.
You want a trade show booth with class, sass and kick, well, you know.
The absolute best way to ensure your trade show booth has just the right combination or class and sass is to hire graphic design experts to create the perfect trade show booth for your business.
Yes, you can buy a trade show booth that's more or less designed using a template, and it will look good.
But you want more for your booth than to just look good:
you want it to be stunning and hypnotic and...
Candy > Trade Show Marketers: How To Make Attendees Willingly Rush to Your Booth
Grocery Shopping The Healthy Menu Mailer Way
Grocery Shopping The Healthy Menu Mailer Way
by: Susanne Myers
I have to admit, grocery shopping isn?t exactly one of my favorite things to do. In case you can?t ?hear? the sarcasm in my voice, let me tell you that I?d rather be doing just about anything other than grocery shopping. I tried delegating it to my husband, but we usually end up eating peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and potato chips when I do that.
Since I can?t avoid grocery shopping, I found a few things that make it a more pleasant and most importantly a faster process. I?d like to share my grocery shopping tips with you.
1) Make a shopping list and stick to it.
Making a list and sticking to it will keep you from buying too much junk. Not only will it encourage you and your family to stick to the new healthy eating lifestyle, it will also save you some money on your grocery bill.
Please apply common sense to this though. If you remember that you forgot...
Grocery Shopping The Healthy Menu Mailer Way
Candy > Grocery Shopping The Healthy Menu Mailer Way
Grocery Shopping The Healthy Menu Mailer Way
Grocery Shopping The Healthy Menu Mailer Way
by: Susanne Myers
I have to admit, grocery shopping isn?t exactly one of my favorite things to do. In case you can?t ?hear? the sarcasm in my voice, let me tell you that I?d rather be doing just about anything other than grocery shopping. I tried delegating it to my husband, but we usually end up eating peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and potato chips when I do that.
Since I can?t avoid grocery shopping, I found a few things that make it a more pleasant and most importantly a faster process. I?d like to share my grocery shopping tips with you.
1) Make a shopping list and stick to it.
Making a list and sticking to it will keep you from buying too much junk. Not only will it encourage you and your family to stick to the new healthy eating lifestyle, it will also save you some money on your grocery bill.
Please apply common sense to this though. If you remember that you forgot...
Grocery Shopping The Healthy Menu Mailer Way
Candy > Grocery Shopping The Healthy Menu Mailer Way
Vintage Lighting: Action Lamps, Stained Glass Lighting and Lava Lamps are here to Stay!
Vintage Lighting: Action Lamps, Stained Glass Lighting and Lava Lamps are here to Stay!
by: Nicole Martins
Since the early part of the 20th century lighting designers have created lamps and fixtures to captivate our senses.
Much like the tranquility one feels staring at a warming fire or the excitement one feels staring at the spectacle of a lightening storm, accent lamps ? those with colorful stained glass patterns, mythical figures, pastoral scenes or action, evoke our emotions.
While illumination is a function of lighting, many of the lamps of the sensory ilk, including lava lamps of the 50?s and 60?s, and animated action lamps of the 20?s and again in the 1950?s, favor more the sense of accent, entertainment and decoration than the practical function of task lighting.
Static yet colorful stained glass lighting appeals as eye candy.
Beautiful patterns of Wisteria, Iris, and nature captivate, whether lit or...
Candy > Vintage Lighting: Action Lamps, Stained Glass Lighting and Lava Lamps are here to Stay!
Best Cookies: Chocolate Walnut Fantasies
Best Cookies: Chocolate Walnut Fantasies
by: Donna Monday
There are a lot of great food fantasies. Now you can add these delicious cookies to your list. These taste sensations feature cream cheese, walnuts, coconut, and milk chocolate.
Chocolate Walnut Fantasies
- 1 cup butter, softened
- ? cup firmly packed brown sugar
- ? cup sugar
- 4 oz. cream cheese, softened
- 2 eggs
- 2 ? cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 ? cups coarsely chopped walnuts
- 1 cup sweetened flaked coconut
- 1 (7 oz.) milk chocolate candy bar, cut into chunks
Directions
Heat oven to 350 degrees.
Combine butter, brown sugar, sugar and cream cheese in large bowl. Beat at medium speed, scraping bowl often, until well mixed. Add eggs; continue beating until well mixed. Reduce speed to low; add flour and baking soda. Beat until well mixed. Stir in walnuts, coconut and...
Best Cookies: Chocolate Walnut Fantasies
Candy > Best Cookies: Chocolate Walnut Fantasies
Speed up Metabolism
Speed up Metabolism
by: P. Mehta
Metabolism is essentially the speed at which our body's motor is running. The speed at which our body burns calories is called the metabolic rate. It's how fast your "motor" is running when you're still in a reclined position or sleeping. About 60-75% of energy is expended by the body at rest in such activities.
The metabolism is based on the number of calories we burn throughout the day. Our body constantly burns calories to keep us going whether we are eating, sleeping, cleaning etc. People with a lower percentage of body fat (i.e. muscular) have a higher metabolism than others that are less muscular because muscle uses more calories to maintain itself than fat. Some people have a slower metabolic rate and have a harder time staying slim. Younger persons have higher (faster) metabolism because of the increased activity of cells. A slow metabolism actually causes to store fat. The slower the metabolic rate,...
Speed up Metabolism
Candy > Speed up Metabolism
Don't Let Your Preschooler Get You Down Candy shoes
home loans Don't Let Your Preschooler Get You Down
home loans Don't Let Your Preschooler Get You Down
ink cartridges Don't Let Your Preschooler Get You Down
vacuum Don't Let Your Preschooler Get You Down Candy
Get Over a Relationship
Get Over a Relationship
by: Trevor Dumbleton
Try as you might, you can't get over a relationship. You know its over, but you can't stop thinking about that certain someone. Whatever that person was like, they just never leave your mind for some reason. You find yourself in a spiral of hope and hopelessness that wraps you up and consumes you to the point where you can't seem to think straight. You don't need to continue beating yourself up. You can finally...
Get Over a Relationship depression
Candy > Get Over a Relationship