We all know I live in a house filled with rowdy boys. They love to climb on things, jump off things, explore everything and most of all they hate the word no. Unfortunately I frequently have to tell them no. But on occasion I have the opportunity to say yes. And many people would think that some of the things I say yes to are kinda dangerous. Sliding down stairs in laundry baskets or on a mattress might fall into that category. So why do I say yes to these kind of wild boy shenanigans?
First look at this face! That is pure adrenaline excitement! Being told that you can do something a little risky and wild and your mom will root you on is dang fun!
Again look at this happy laughing face! How can you say no to that! Not only is he having a blast doing something really simple but he is learning he is capable. He is capable of doing things that are a bit scary. He is learning his boundaries and how to figure out what is safe for him. He quickly learned going down head first wasn't a good idea. By doing things with slight risk they learn to gauge real risk and keep themselves safe!
Happy face!
Team Work!
Joy!
One other reason I say yes to this kind of thing is because they are going to do risky things anyway. I would much rather them do it in front of me so I can jump in if needed. When they said they wanted to go down the stairs I explained that if you go head first you could hurt your head. We always want to protect our heads. So they didn't go downstairs head first. I promise you if I would have said no they would have waited till I was in the shower and done it anyway and probably cracked a head open. So I said yes, supervised, but let them take some risks and have some fun.
We have to say no so dang often to our kids. And we frequently say no to things that can be really fun for them. Instead of always saying no why not set some boundaries and let them explore. They learn so much from trial and error and risk taking. How often are we so firm in our boundaries that we are really boxing them in? How often are we worried more about if the house gets messy or they scratch the paint on the wall instead of if they learn how to control their bodies, gauge safety, and learn to face fears?
Try saying yes to something a little out of the ordinary this week. I promise you it will be a success if for no other reason that you will get to see a smile of pure joy on your kids face!
