“Stop hitting your sister!”
“Get your foot off of the baby!”
“Quiet voices, please!”
“Come back here!”
These are all phrases I said (some louder than others) over the past two days.
Isn’t it so easy to get wrapped up in the “grind”?
MONDAY’S AGENDA:
7am – Wake Up/Breakfast/Get ready for the day
9am – Cora’s gymnastics
11am – Workout with Darcy (duh, right?!)
12:30pm – Lunch at home
1:15pm – Nap Time
4pm – Prep dinner
6pm – Family Time
7pm – Bath Time
8pm – Bedtime Routine – Sleep tight, kiddos… I’m gonna relax with some wine
TUESDAY’S AGENDA:
See Monday’s Agenda
WEDNESDAY’S AGENDA:
See Monday’s Agenda
You get the point, right? We’re on such autopilot, and sometimes that routine becomes mundane and we forget to add that special flair. Or, what about the little tidbits of fun, memory-making or time to work on building great personality traits in our kids?
Below I’ll share with you one really quality way to:
- Bond with your children one-on-one in a really unique way;
- Increase your child’s confidence; and
- Rest easy for the night, knowing you are taking an extra step to change your child’s future for the better <— No, really!
I read or heard of this idea somewhere, and I really apologize for not recalling the source, but the thought certainly made an impression on me, so I’ll pass the buck.
I coined it “Teddy Talk”, and it’s not the teddy your significant other might first think of…
[Caveat: I ran the title, “Teddy Talk” past my husband, and he suggested “Teddy Bear Talk”. After I told him that’s not really catchy, he said because (and I quote), “It’s a lot better than people thinking you are talking to your child while in lingerie.” I went with the catchier term, anyway, because I KNEW you’d get it.]
So, what’s TEDDY TALK?
Purpose:
1) To lift your child’s spirits
2) To increase their confidence
3) To follow through with positive reinforcement
4) To let them rest knowing you’re proud of them
5) To establish a “clean slate” for tomorrow
Execution:
1) Choose any stuffed animal, doll, action figure, or any other character in their room.
2) Talk to the character as if it’s alive (this is really important), even feel free to greet the character first.
3) Tell the character 2-5 things that your child did that day that were awesome! Ok, I know what you’re thinking, ‘…What if it was a really hard day and I can’t find many things?’ Be creative! Saying anything big or small will make a huge impact. Some examples of making the little things count include: “She gave a huge smile to the neighbor! It was so kind of her!” or “He ate his breakfast like a champ today, which was very cool, because it gave him energy for the rest of the day.”
4) So, as you can see from the above examples, the components of your message to “Teddy” include (a) the good deed/quality AND (b) why you thought it was cool. Knowing the “why” behind rules and “shoulds” makes everything easier to replicate.
Doing this for the first time, it’s very possible that you will be surprised by a really sweet, unforgettable look on your child’s face.
Please comment below after you try this. I can’t wait to hear!
See it in action:
P.S. Yes, this is really how I talk when I talk to “Teddy”. 🙂
P.S.S. My daughter has pink curtains.
P.S.S.S. Sorry about the low-volume – I bootstrapped this video so you could get a glimpse of this part of our bedtime routine.
Photo credit:
Title photo (teddy bear): homero chap of stockvault.com
Biker photo: http://cupcake.nilssonlee.se
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