Monday, February 12, 2007

Parent Talking Tip 2 - Buying Time

One of my parenting frustrations is that I can't be in two places at the same time...
While I'm preparing dinner, I can't be with my daughter helping with a homework question.
While getting myself ready in the morning, I can't be with my son helping him find his shoe.

This is how it sounds..."Mom! Can you help me with this math problem!" (from across the house).
"Mom! Can you help me find my other shoe!" (from the other room).

This is how I sound..."Work on the problem for 5 minutes and if you still need help, let me know."
"Look for your shoe for 5 minutes, if you still need help, we can do teamwork."

My kids learn to figure it out and stick to a problem, aka,
Frustration Tolerance. I don't get on the stop / start rollar coaster and buy myself some time.

Not as good as a time machine, but that "5 minutes" buys me alot more than just 5 minutes ;-)

Try it and let me know how it works for you.

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