Collaborative Post
Being a parent can be one of the toughest jobs on the planet, and it isn’t helped when our kids throw us a curveball. But life, in general, seems to have a habit of keeping us on our toes. Here are some of the things that we need to deal with as parents that we would rather not have to.
Potty training in public
There is a moment in potty training when you have to leave the house and pray that everything goes to plan. You bring nappies, spare pants and clothes, a travel potty, everything you can possibly think of to prevent any accidents. You leave the house and everything goes fine. So the next time, you relax a bit for the next few times and think that you are out of the woods. And then, disaster strikes. You will let your guard down and your little potty trained kid will have an accident or need the toilet RIGHT NOW. Until your kids have been potty trained for 6 months, don’t let your guard down, it’s a trap.
Hospital trips
When it comes to kids, there will be a time when they might need a trip to the hospital. This might be for a routine newborn hearing check to needing surgery on their ears for vents. No matter what the reason is, it can be heartbreaking to see your child at the mercy of a doctor. But, the worst is always a trip to A&E., especially if you have boys. Why boys? Great question. Boys have a habit of getting themselves into a real pickle. Things get shoved up noses, things need to be removed from ears, and there is always the question of “and how did you get that in there exactly?” Trust us, if you have boys, you might end up on a first-name basis with the staff at your local hospital.
Summoned to the school
To be fair, there are many different reasons why you might be summoned to the school. There are some reasons that you will laugh about when they are older, such as using the magnetic letters to spell out swear words. However, there are the other reasons such as bullying. Nobody wants their child to be bullied or be the bully. If this is the case, you will need to sit down and get to the bottom of it with your child and the school. The important thing is to work together to get to the bottom of what is happening and ensure that it never happens again. Just remember, you could get phoned to see the Princple for any number of reasons, swear words are the least of your problems.
Breaking bad news
Bad news can come in many different forms. It doesn’t matter if their hamster has died or telling them that there is no ice cream left. One of the toughest moments is explaining death to them. The unfortunate thing in life is that we never know when it will end. You should try and prepare your kids if someone is ill so that they understand that they might not be around anymore. There is nothing wrong with preparing for your own so get your will sorted and compare life insurance quotes. There is no good way of breaking bad news other than sitting to explain calmly what is happening and answer any questions they might have. You might be surprised at how well they handle it. Except for the no ice cream thing, they will hate that.
Saying no
We love our kids and want them to have everything that we never had but we need to say “no” from time to time. Saying no can be one be one of the hardest things that you can say to your kids but it is important to set boundaries. One of the worst times to say no is when you are out shopping. Kids have a habit of asking for things with you are out getting essentials. Maybe you have a budget that you have to stick too and there is no wiggle room for any treats. This will be the time that they spot the best thing ever and have to have it. You say no. And then they ask why, REALLY LOUD. Do you tell them that you have no money for it or do you go with the classic “because I said so”?
When they move out
If you have done your job properly as a parent, there will come a time when your kids move out. This is a tough day for parents because they are still your baby and you have seen the mental effort that they put into making a simple meal. How will they survive without you? Do they know how to pay their bills (probably) and will they eat actual food (probably not). However, you can’t stress yourself too much because moving out is normal. They might fail and need to move back home or they might need you for advice. Whatever they do, let them know that they always have a home with you, and they come to you for any reason. Hopefully, that reason is not for rent money.
Telling fibs
Kids have a wonderful habit of interpreting reality in a different way from what we do. You could be standing in a conversation about something as simple as the types of cake you will be bringing, and your kids could hear that UFO’s are planning to attack at Christmas. We have no idea how they can jump to wild conclusions but some of them are fun. But then there are the jumps that are small side steps that can get you in a lot of trouble. Our advice is don’t lie around your kids and don’t say anything that you don’t want to be repeated with a weird version of the truth. Things get awkward when you have to explain to a person why your kid is repeating their deep dark secrets to the world.