The Blogger Mommie

A couple weeks back I learnt an important parenting lesson. I was trying to get my son to put on his clothes and I was at my wits end because he would not listen. I tried sweet talk, promised a surprise, I even tried unsuccessfully to count till three but nothing worked. It seemed like a game to him and I could not control the anger in my voice at that moment - so I yelled a threat at him. Yes, I used the most horrible way to deal with my son at that moment. In the loudest voice possible I used the “you will listen to me now” statement. I think both of us were surprised at the extent to which the situation went and in return, I got exactly what I had given. My son yelled back in protest “NO”! Kids have their ways of expressing themselves and as I look back to that day, it was certainly my biggest parenting fail but what struck me was that habits, well, both good and bad are something we actually pass on to our kids even when we think they aren’t looking. While we all want to ...

Bedtime for my 2 (and half) year old is incomplete without reading a book or story. Every night I watch him excited, as he runs to his book shelf and picks out a book. Sometimes, it's the same book, which has been read two to three times. Other times, he'll quietly read and observe a picture book. Last month he surprised me by saying he wanted to read the book himself and proceeded to narrate his own version, clearly and animatedly. Hearing him read gave me a sense of happiness, an affirmation of how quickly his skills are steadily advancing and developing.   As we begin the countdown to one of his biggest milestones (i.e.) starting school, I realize that it involves more than just talking about all the fun things he will learn to do and the people he will meet. It means helping him retain and build up the skills he has already learnt. In addition to new faces, a different environment and the absence of 'mummy', my son will learn to perfect his social, emotional,...