Just Say No!

Do you remember when you were a kid and you felt like your parents lived to tell you no!? I sure do. I think I thought they derived some kind of perverse pleasure from denying me what I wanted (to have or to do). Now that I'm a mom of 4 I realize that it is not the funnest (yeah, I know. Not really a word but it fits) part of my job to tell my kids no. I don't enjoy it at all.

And since my parents were not mean spirited (well, they aren't, not past tense since they're still living) I doubt they enjoyed it any more than I do.

Who loves seeing the look of disappointment on their child's face when they can't do something or have something they long for?

I hate saying "no" to my kids. I hate disciplining my kids. I hate telling them that something they did wasn't "good enough". I mean, I don't say it like that but that's what I feel like they are thinking when I correct them on a chore or schoolwork. I feel like I'm giving them the message that their efforts aren't cutting it. And that's not the message I want to send. I want them to be confident and know that their mom said "yes" to everything I could! And that I"m proud of their effort when they give something their all. 

Well, I had a really cute picture but I am out of storage on google.com or whatever. I have to figure this out...... :(