Kidlets

Having kiddos is tough!  Tough because they force you to try to be unselfish and truly understanding of someone other than yourself.  I thought that dating and marriage forced you to do that, and it does, but not at this level.  When dating someone and they get to be a pain, you can retreat to "They're a jerk, maybe this isn't for me." or "We're not a fit."  When kids get to be a pain, you are basically left with, "I made this creature, and we're going to be together forever, so I better figure out how to get better at communication."  And that's what I am focusing on today.  I just did a brief read-through of "How to Talk So Kids Will Listen and Listen So Kids Will Talk."  A lot of it has already disseminated through today's society and wasn't really earth shattering, but it was still full of things that basically mean I have to be way more empathetic and put serious effort into how I respond, not just knee-jerk reaction.  I don't want to be a bad parent.  Hopefully it makes me better. :)