Be a Yes Mom!

After reading Nicole's blog and then hopping over here, I decided to also take the "Yes" Mom Challenge. Daily I tell my kids no they can't do something because I don't want to deal with the mess or the clean up or because it is just easier to do myself. I am going to try to let my kids do more fun, messy things that they ask to do.

I actually already had an opportunity to say "yes" to my kids today. Lucy asked to wash the dishes today. I realize that I should look at this as a great time to teach her some responsibility, but normally I would tell her "not right now" because it is less messy and goes much more quickly if I do it myself (our dishwasher is broken, by the way - has been for about 2 months). Today, I decided to let her help and she had a great time and she worked really hard. Norah also asked to help with something so I let her snap the green beans for dinner. She, too, worked really hard and I only have to do 1/2 the bag! There are green bean ends all over the counter and floor, but who cares!!

As Nicole and Jill Savage stated, this is not about permissive parenting. Our kids obviously need boundaries, but it is about saying yes when we are only saying no for selfish reasons!!