Whether your children are grown up on not, and whether or not you have children, I strongly urge you to read this post. You won’t regret it. And it you don’t… 🙂
I’m what is often referred to as a mean dad. To put it another way, I am a parent. I am the law. I think you get the picture. I believe in the same methods for disciplining children that Lin at Telling It Like It Is describes so well in her post, How to Discipline Children. Her blog was the first place I read of the term “mean mom“, and then realized that I’m a mean dad. But that’s the way I was raised, and it worked, and I figure if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. To me, there are no secrets to raising good kids, you just need to be a parent, and that means saying no. Children aren’t perfect, they will make “mistakes“, and sometimes you will need to discipline your children. All this said, I am always open to new ideas, and I recently read about a new kinder, gentler method of how to discipline your children which I want to share with you.
A Better Way to Discipline your Children
In a nutshell, the idea is really brilliantly simple. When your child gets in trouble, instead of being a mean parent and spanking them, or being an enlightened parent and giving them a time out, or being their friend and and/or trying to figure out how you are to blame for their behavior, this new discipline method is to go for a car ride and talk to them. Yes, it’s just that simple. Go for a drive and TALK with your child.
From what I read about this revolutionary method of simply taking your child for a car ride and talking to them, this method is EXTREMELY EFFECTIVE. After the car ride, children seem to really calm down and stop their bad behavior. It could be the soothing effect of the car vibrations, or it could be just just getting your child away from the distractions of the TV, computer, cellphone, iPod, or friends. It could also just be the one-on-one time with them that they appreciate. But it works! To see the amazing effect that taking your child for a car ride and calmly talking to them can have, just scroll down…
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[image of terrified kid on hood of car holding on and screaming for dear life as mom speeds along at 99 miles per hour]
I told you that you wouldn’t regret reading this post! 😉 Just to be clear, this post is NOT serious. Do NOT do this at home, or on the road, or anywhere else for that matter.
On this last day of 2008, I encourage you to remember the words of the great turtle guru, who said “Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery. But today is a Gift, which is why it is called the Present.”
Happy New Year, and may we all have a great 2009.
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