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Being a Parent... Opportunities to Turn A Bad Experience Into a Good
Experience
by:
Bill Platt
The biggest challenge I have had to face
in my own life is that of being a good parent. My kids make it hard
for me to stay true to the rules of good parenting... They break
everything I own... Repeatedly...
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Fortunately, I do have the presence of mind
to realize that as toddlers and young children, they really do not intend to
break things... Instead, they are trying to get a grasp on how the world
around them works.
Yep, the lego floats. I wonder what it will do if I flush it??
"Daddy! The toilet is stopped up."
So, Daddy pulls the toilet up, tries to backfeed a snake, and finally gives
up. Daddy had to buy a new toilet, because he could not loose the lego stuck
in its plumbing.
Of course, the kiddies never told me what
they flushed. All I knew is that I could not get it out.
So, I turned it into a learning experience for my boys. |
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I carried the toilet to the street, and took
the boys with me. I took my trusty hammer and broke the plumbing portion of
the toilet to see what kind of blockage I had tried to overcome. Upon
finding a lego in the plumbing, I instructed the boys that the reason they
could not use their toilet is because their lego got stuck.
We have been working with the kids to teach them an understanding of the
value of money. The six year old is starting to get it, but the boy who just
turned four is still a bit unconcerned about such things.
I explained to the boys that we would have to
spend money to buy a new toilet. And, because that requires money to be
spent, I would not be able to afford to take them bowling as promised. I
could have afforded to do so, but they needed to learn a lesson. |
Once they calmed from losing their
bowling privileges, we took a bad and made it fun.
Each boy got the opportunity to use the hammer on the remains of our
toilet. The trash guys would not have picked up the toilet, because
it was a big object. So, I killed two birds with one stone, so to
speak.
Each boy got to take turns breaking the toilet into smaller pieces.
They had a blast.
Then, we took the chance to teach them the basics of basketball. We
needed the small chunks of porcelain in the trash barrel, so we set
the barrel nearby and tossed bits of the remains of the toilet into
the trash can, as if we were playing basketball.
It was an awesome experience overall, and my kids got to learn a few
things, and try a few new things along the way.
And yes, we did wash our hands after our game of basketball.
About The Author
Bill Platt is the owner of
http://thePhantomWriters.com Article Submission Services.
This learning experience came directly on the heals of another
unfortunate experience with his children. The people who have
read the story have all agreed that they felt bad for Bill and
his wife, but they just could not help themselves... As they
read the story, they were overcome with fits of laughter... You
can read the story for yourself and make your own judgments as
to whether you want to laugh or cry:
http://thephantomwriters.com/x.pl/tpw/kids/omg/index.html
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