Tuesday's Tip (#10)

#10! Whoa - Tuesday's Tips are into double digits!


Here's a tip for you:


Choose your battles.


Really, this applies to most of life. But, when it comes to parenting, this is especially poignant. You need to know when it's important to lay down the law and when you should just let something roll. Kids do lots of crazy things. You'll drive yourself nuts trying to make them conform to your sense of normal.


Take last night, for example. Charlotte had one of her lovely screaming fits that she hadn't had in a few weeks. She started around midnight and was inconsolable for well over an hour. She finally progressed to making words and kept crying "shoulder." This meant she wanted to listen to "Put Your Head on My Shoulder" by Paul Anka. On repeat. (Thanks, Lala!)


While "shoulder" was working it's magic (& making me want to start screaming), Charlotte was coming back into reality and finally started talking instead of crying. She wanted crackers. And chocolate milk. Apparently, I'm running a damn diner at 1:30 in the morning. I might've said "no," but I so desperately wanted sleep. 


So, at 1:45 in the morning, I found myself in my bed with a very cute - now smiling - 19 month old who was busy licking the peanut butter out of her crackers. She kept telling me how delicious they were and stuffing the licked crackers into my mouth. I'm fairly certain I woke with a few of them stuck to me. I could've said no to all of that nonsense if I wanted to listen to a few more hours of screaming. But, I chose to battle quiet cracker crumbs instead of a screaming toddler. Draw the battle lines. Maybe crumbs in the bed are a hard limit for you. Choose your battles and let things roll when you can. If not, you'll be in an asylum before your kids even hit preschool.


Have a tip to share? Or a crumb catcher? Feel free to leave a comment below...


... & be sure to check back every Tuesday for a new tip!