Teachable Moments

I experienced some very good teachable moments with the kids today.

First I took them to the Jones Brothers Easter Egg hunt in Stinson Park.  I warned them ahead of time that there would be a LOT of other people there so we may not get any eggs and not to let that upset them because we will get lots of eggs from the Easter Bunny tonight so it is ok if we don’t get any today. We are going just to have a little fun.

There were in fact LOTS and LOTS of people there and the announcer said “Go” and the kids took off running…Lexi was run into and ended up falling to the ground and Liam didn’t know what was going on. Logan and Austin each got one egg and a mom with a very sweet little boy (who was probably only 2) came over with 3 eggs in his basket. She encouraged him to share one with Liam and one with Lexi since they didn’t get any. (Lexi was in tears this whole time because she fell and because she didn’t get any eggs). It was the sweetest thing and such a great moment to remind the kids that no matter how little somebody has, the nice and right thing to do is to share with others that have less than we do. It was good for them to see both sides of that. Thank you again to the wonderful mom and little boy that shared with my children!

Next we went to Jones Brothers for cupcakes and waited in line outside the door to get in. Once inside we followed the line ahead of us toward the counter and suddenly a woman starts yelling at me for cutting. Being that I had been waiting in line this whole time and was simply following the line that was in front of me, I had no idea what she was talking about. I spoke calmly with her and apologized that she was so upset but didn’t see how it was my fault or why I deserved the way she was treating me. Obviously she was very upset and I happened to be the person in the wrong place at the wrong time that fell in direct line of her attack. I, however, never lost my temper, never raised my voice and maintained a smile on my face (which secretly I think made her even more mad…lol!) the whole time. The other woman she was with joined in on the attack and instead of attacking back, I simply smiled and let them go ahead of us.  They then turned their attack on the poor girls at the counter that were working their tails off to try to serve everybody as quickly as possible.

The kids and I then got up to the counter to pay and I apologized to the girls at the counter for the treatment they had just received.  I thanked them for their incredible service and let them know that I admired the way they were handling such a busy day and such a stressful environment.

After finishing their cupcakes and walking back to our car, I sat and asked the kids what they thought about the day and what had happened.  They said they had a good time and were happy we went!  I asked them what they thought about the little boy that shared his Easter Eggs with us leaving only one for himself.  They said they thought he was very nice for sharing with Lexi and Liam and I emphasized again the importance of sharing and helping others even if we don’t have a lot to share or give.  I reminded them of how good that made them feel when somebody shared with them and that we want to treat others the same way as that little boy did with them.

Next I asked them what they thought about how the ladies acted in the cupcake store.  “Not cool” my oldest said.  We discussed how the women were angry and how they yelled at mommy.  “Did mommy get mad at them and yell back or push them or hit them or scream at them?” I asked.  “No, you talked it through with them!” they proudly answered!  I reminded them that even though it did make mommy upset that those women were yelling at me, it was important to stay calm and talk with them to try to make things better.  I also told them that even though mommy stayed calm and didn’t yell and tried to talk with the women, they were still angry and even though it didn’t fix things, it also didn’t make it worse.  I told them that sometimes not everybody will be nice or act the right way and we can’t fix that, but what we can do is stay calm and treat them better than they are treating us.  And if it gets really bad, to just walk away and go ask for help if you need to.

I am so very proud of my kids for they way they acted today.  They stuck together, they listened to mommy, they helped comfort each other when one of them was sad, they showed true gratitude to somebody that helped them and shared with them, they waited patiently in line for cupcakes without acting up and they quietly watched and learned from me during a stressful situation.  And most importantly they shared their thoughts and feelings with me and we had a great discussion about what we could learn from what we had experienced.  Love those little ankle-biters!  🙂

Until next time…be kind to one another and take every teachable moment life offers you.