March 29, 2004
three things
Hopefully the battle with the rats should be coming to an end. I boarded up their main entry point and put some poison under the house. We shall see.
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Jeannette came by for a visit this weekend. It was very good to hang out a bit with her and Sarah, as they always make us laugh. We're very thankful that she's an old friend who keeps in touch. Though it was a little weird, since we read eachother's blogs, all the usual "so, how is this going?" kinda chit-chat was unnecessary.
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I'm already weary of baby magazines. I think I've learned some useful stuff, but the consumerism and the level at which they keep my thoughts is troubling. I like to think that I'm immune to all the ads, but after reading a bunch of the articles, I find myself focused on trying to be the perfect parent. And I tell myself that I CAN be the perfect parent, and these 5 tips on how to soothe a screaming child WILL make me perfecter.
Which of course is a load of crap. All the articles focus on the "taking care of business" level of things, which of course is a necessary level, but I'm realizing I need to remember there's more to it than that. Am I being idealistic? Sure. That's what this time is for, right?
Posted by bobw at March 29, 2004 01:20 PM
Just remember it's not your job to make them happy or be their best friend. That's gonna be hard for me when we have a girl.
check out the magazine called: brain, child
(www.brainchildmag.com)
it is a literary magazine for mothers - way, way cool
I find that consistency is the key to everything. No matter what you decide to do discipline-wise, make a decision and stick to it. Once the child establishes the idea that they can "get one over on you" when you crumble on your ideals, that will only lead to trouble.
I'm sure you will notice all the things other parents do to "let down" their children. You will also probably have no trouble identifying all the peccadilloes your parents have casually installed in your parenting file. One thing to remember is this: Any decision you make may or may not ruin your child's life... Just joking... You are the kind of guy who stands very little chance of doing anything to ruin ONE DAY of a child's life, let alone their entire life.
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