Are you setting a good example?
As parents there is one truth that is universal. Say it with me, we are not perfect. We try. There are Moms out there that attend every playgroup and have every possible thing their child (or somebody else's child) could need. I see you! There are the moms that are part of every school organization that exists in their area. Then there are some of us who are doing well to get the kids dressed in the morning and keep up with the demands of our day. All of those Moms and Dads too share one common thread because we are all doing the best we can. Being human though, we are bound to make mistakes. We will slip from time to time. How you handle those slip ups is the important part.
Our children are a reflection of us.
That is bold for a reason. They are. When we sneak snacks from the kitchen thinking the kids aren't looking, chances are our kids are doing it too. When we stub our toe and some colorful words come out, our kids pick up on that too. Even more so, how we are in our day to day lives is setting an example for our children. How we treat others matters. If we show a lack of compassion we are teaching our children that it's ok to do that. If we spend our time trying to outdo one another our children are going to do it too. I am guilty of it too. When i'm with my sister, it becomes easy to point out somebody's ugly outfit or to stereotype the slow driver in front of me as old. Now that I have 2 children, I realize that it isn't a good thing. I don't want my daughter to grow up to judge what the other girls at school are wearing and I really don't want my son to start driving and have road rage.
It starts with us.
Those behaviors we exhibit that we aren't so proud of can be changed. We just have to be willing to work on it. When we make these changes, it sends a message too. It is ok for our kids to see that we can make mistakes. The learning experience it can teach overall is very useful, not just to our kids, but to us too.
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