Just the other day, the Reno Gazette Journal ran an op/ed piece that focused on saying no to your kids. Specifically, it was the 2nd paragraph that caught my attention:
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“At least I’m getting it back enough to know this: Telling your (approximately) 3-year-old “I’m not going to tell you again” 13 times in the time it takes a columnist to eat a taco is not effective parenting.”
The rest of the piece is half-way tongue-in-cheek, but it raises an interesting point: When do you hold your kids’ feet to the fire and when do you let them off the hook? Where is the line at your house?
4 responses so far ↓
Whitney // Jul 12, 2007 at 7:20 am
I sccrewed up on this last night, in that I caved after saying no to my kid, making sure he learns that if he wears me down, he will win. Consistency is even more important than no
Erica // Jul 12, 2007 at 8:29 am
I say no once, no again, the third time I warn that if they do it again then I will do …….x
I have *always* followed through, but then I’ve never threatened anything like missing a day out or anything major yet, my downfall will come
Nan // Jul 12, 2007 at 2:27 pm
I stick to my guns, most of the time. This gives my kids a chance to argue if they think they have a case. But they know when I am serious. When I said to my son recently “This! Is not! Good enough! Are you mad? Your grades better improve, buster, or no sailing for you!” boy, you should have seen those A’s rolling in. He knew that no amount of begging would help him, and he was really looking forward to a weekend at sea.
The Lazy Organizer // Jul 12, 2007 at 7:53 pm
I claim that I never make a threat unless I intend to follow through so I’m sure I don’t make an idle threat more than 100 times in a day. Hey, that’s better than most parents isn’t it?
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