You know how they say, “if your toddler is quiet, it’s never a good sign”? I learned that first hand this week. I was home with my toddlers while my husband was working and it was chaos from the time they woke up. Lots of crying, whining for snacks, fighting—it all left me feeling exhausted before 10am. So, when my 3 year old told me he was going to do something upstairs, I was grateful for the break for a few minutes…but a few minutes of quiet became suspicious. I called upstairs and asked what he was doing, but his response was muffled by the bathroom door. I figured I should go see if he needed help wiping. I was in for a shock!
My (typically) rule following 3 year old was standing on the bathroom counter holding both his safety scissors and my husbands hair shears, cutting away. He proudly told me, “Mama, I was cutting my hair”. Now, I’m sure you can imagine we’ve had plenty of chats about only cutting paper and making sure to cut paper that mama and dada say is okay to use. We also talk about who is allowed to cut his hair—our barber. I was stunned; I kept my cool and asked him to give me the scissors but I absolutely did not expect what happened next.
He burst into tears and apologized. I never raised my voice, didn’t threaten to punish him or call Santa. Truthfully, I wasn’t upset with him at all—I was upset with myself for not keeping an eye on him. We don’t use threats or punishment in our home, but my poor boy was so afraid to let me down. He knew he didn’t listen or follow directions, and the natural consequence was enough for him. So, here’s your reminder that children make mistakes, and often the consequences of their actions are enough of a punishment. And parents, we make mistakes too! You can bet that I won’t be leaving the scissors out and letting my toddlers out of my sight any time soon!
Comments