Notes from a Know-It-All Mom

I'm an insecure person by nature.  I'm quite sure that all of my mom friends are feeding their kids better, teaching them more, and disciplining them more effectively than I am.  But every once in a while, I figure out a system that works for some aspect of parenting and I get really excited to share it with everyone I know...so that I look like a more fabulous parent than I am during the embarrassing number of T.V.-watching hours of the day.  (Guess what two are doing while I blog right now).  So, as I share these tips and tricks, please don't think I'm being a know it all. I'm simply being a know a tiny bit.  Please feel free to share your own tricks, too.  I'm realizing that parenting has a whole lot to do with magic at times than anything else. 

Clean-Up Game
I've figured out that turning anything into a game gets my kids motivated way faster than threats of punishment or any other method.  That cute little clean-up song that seems to work for Kindergarten teachers has no power over my children.  I had to get more creative.  I have to give my mom credit for this one actually.  She's a genius.  We say, "Riddlee riddlee ree...I see something you don't see...and the color of it is...green!"  I assign that color to one kid and he or she finds an object that color.  Sometimes it takes some time to get a really messy room cleaned up this way, but it keeps their attention and makes it fun!

Cart/Stroller Game
When we're maneuvering through stores or parking lots, I'm always amazed at what poor spatial abilities my sweet ones have.  Celia and Mikey always hold onto either side of Xavier's stroller, but when we're trying to squeeze between cars or through a tight spot in a store, they just assume the world will morph around them and allow them to fit.  So, while at Kohl's recently, waiting for Mike to order 10 million picture frames from their supposedly customer-friendly kiosk, we invented a game called Formation-Wings.  When I need them to get into single file, Celia first, Mikey second stroller third, I command, "Formation!"  They line up.  Once we're through, I say, "Wings!"  and they grab ahold of the stroller again (sometimes sticking out their arms like airplane wings).  They think it's funny, and we stay out of people's way...at least a little bit.

Music in the Car Trade Game
For awhile, we were having an issue with Celia wanting whatever Mikey had in the car and vice versa.  It could be a dirty napkin he was playing with, but if she didn't have one, she'd whine until I was ready to pull the car over and use a street sign as a time-out corner.  So, we came up with a "solution to the problem," one of my kids' favorite catch phrases now.  We always have on kids' music in the car--Tangled, Laurie Berkner, Backyardigans, you name it, we've got it!  So, at the end of each song, they'd trade whatever the desired object might be.  Sometimes, they do it without my prompting.  They just come up with the idea on their own.  Happy mommy!  Speaking of CDs in the car...lately we've been having issues with who gets to pick the music, leaving mommy scrambling to find CDs while driving...totally unsafe and ridiculous.  So now, before we leave the garage, a store, wherever we are, we take turns and choose a new CD.  My happiest moment lately was when Mikey chose Tangled, Celia's obsession.  She was delighted and said, "Mikey, I love that CD!"  Mikey replied, "I know, Celia.  I just wanted to make you happy."

OK, I hear that their show is ending.  I'll have to continue this blog post at a later date.  I'd love to hear some of your tricks of the trade, too!