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| Note: this is NOT my Granny, although the "I told you so" look is recognizable! |
If it ain't broke, don't fix it. This little gem is one I keep bucking at but really need to take to, well, heart! For starters, consider our three 3-year olds, who are still in cribs. My husband and I have a healthy debate about when to move them to beds. People have commented (more than once) "They still fit in cribs?!" But, here's the thing, they are HAPPY in their cribs. Why take three happily contained tots and set them free to wreak havoc around the house -- morning, noon and night?! The solution? Don't. Leave them in the crib!
Another recent relevant example is our minivan. The lease was up in December and in the midst of end of year mayhem at work, holiday mayhem at home and the typical chaos of our crazy lives, we decided to spend some time car shopping. We seriously spent hours attempting to jam our family of seven (and 90-lb dog!) into a Ford Flex, Honda Pilot and several other mid-size cars. You know what we ended up getting? Yep. Another mini-van. The moral of the story? Stick with what works and you'll save yourself a lot of time and headaches!
Tissues are like Amex -- don't leave home without them! Ever. You know what's neat about Granny? She can be dressed to the nines -- silk blouse, sparkling jewels, pretty flats and a matching handbag and you know what's stuffed up that silk sleeve? Tissues! And you know who didn't have any on Sunday while several tots battled a winter cold? Me. And you know who came to the rescue? Granny! This is an easy one. Keep tissues everywhere -- in your car, your bag, heck, even your sleeve! If you don't, you'll end up as my kids often do -- using their sleeve (or worse yet, mine!) AS a tissue. Ew. Don't do this. Buy stock in Kleenex and stock up for the season!
Say yes to treats. So, there we were in church on Sunday. It was me, my 90-year old grandparents (ok, Granny will be 90 in April but close enough!) and the triplets, who were behaving quite nicely. Not a peep out of them. I really wished that Des and the other kids were there to witness this angelic behavior but they were busy with another obligation. Suddenly I noticed a minty scent and upon closer inspection, realized that all three little fellas were happily sucking a way on a Lifesaver. Granny had slipped them a sweet right under my nose... which couldn't help but notice the pleasant scent of peppermint wafting through the aisles. She gave me a wink and mouthed "Why not?" Why not indeed?
Some other tried and true Granny tips:
- Once your tot is off the bottle and into a sippy cup of milk, save it for the END of the meal. That way they will eat the real food when they are actually hungry rather than being force fed when they're not.
- Speaking of which, don't force feed your kids. I learned this lesson the hard way when I got a pile of regurgitated string beans in my lap. They may not say it with words but trust me (and Granny), your kids know when to say when and it's up to you to pick up on their cues.
- Teach your kids their "Ps and Qs" (please and thank yous!) at an early age. Really early. Before they can even talk. Manners matter and it's never too early to start.
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1 comment:
Baguette is getting pretty good with the "thank yous" and we've started on "please."
As for force-feeding her, we've never been able to! As an infant, when she was done with the bottle she would close her lips tight and turn her head away. Now that she's a toddler, when she's done she holds out her plate and says, "No. No. No. No." until you take it from her. And you do want to take it from her, because it's actually quite nice of her to provide warning before she dumps it on the floor.
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