Shuffling Parental Decisions
To the front
Oh yeah
Oh yeah
Oh yeah
Step left then drift
Step right that’s it
Criss cross AND DO THE MANNY!
Criss cross here we go
Now jump, jump, wiggle your rump and walk it out like granny
Move it out
Hey
Hey
Hey
Get on your feet human people
Stop holding up the wall
Criss cross you got it
You got it
You got it…
Everybody
Jump
Jump
Now Freeze
Oh yaaaaaaaaaaaa!
The cool is cold
Directions are a fun thing sometimes, right? Doing “The Sid Shuffle” at any “age” makes you smile. But if we, as parents, are always telling our children when to step in and step out (jump, drift and freeze), they probably wouldn’t think the process of growing up was so fun, right?
Although we want to talk to our kids, guide them and set limits, we need to allow our children to “mess up”.
“Messing up” is not giving up or allowing misbehavior, but imposing the capability of learning from their mistakes, develop problem solving skills, improve decision making abilities and experiencing consequences.
How do we know when to “step in and step out” of situations to allow our children to grow up able to fight their own battles? Here are a couple suggestions for organizing your interactions with your children… knowing when to step in or step out of a situation:
- Always ask questions
- Always offer choices
- Establish limits
“We don’t tell our kids what to do, but we put the burden of decision making on their shoulders. As they grow older, we don’t tell them what the limits are; we establish limits by offering choices,” says Foster Cline, MD and Jim Fay from their book Parenting with Love & Logic: Teaching Children Responsibility.
Determine which battles are worth winning and stay out of the rest – steer away from giving commands. Set limits with your children. Setting limits, offering choices, asking questions and get your child thinking instead of fighting will effectively diminish misunderstandings… and allow everything to come to order.
Do you have any tips for other parents about how you handle the shuffle of deciding when to step in or step out of a situation?
ICE AGE 4: CONTINENTAL DRIFT © 2012 Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation. All Rights Reserved. Property of Fox. Promotional use only. Sale, duplication, other transfer of this material or excerpts thereof, is strictly prohibited.
Kathy Jenkins is the President of Come To Order, a Residential Professional Organizer, Student Organizer, Certified Family Manager Coach, Writer and Speaker based in Richmond, Virginia. She is a member of NAPO and ICD and is dedicated to helping her clients simplify their lives by reducing clutter, organizing their homes and offices, and managing their time. Kathy especially enjoys working with kids and their families to help them learn good organizational skills that will benefit them for a lifetime. Follow Kathy on Facebook.
