Comments on: Neither Rhyme nor Reason

By: thinkthinkers

thinkthinkers — Wed, 24 Mar 2010 05:53:26 +0000

Heh – gum chewing has always been reminiscent of cud-chewing to me, so my anti-gum rule is purely aesthetic.

15? I will be lucky to make it through this year without dropping dead from all the “I want a phoooooone” whinging.

By: Nicole Langan

Nicole Langan — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 21:12:42 +0000

“Jackets are for warmth and I’m not paying for half of one!” – GREAT QUOTE!

By: Leah

Leah — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 13:58:44 +0000

chewing gum, yup, bubble gum, yup, coke, lexie was weened on it, dying hair, only if she pays for it herself (hasn’t happened so far), short jacket, probably wouldn’t like it but yup … pretty slack aren’t I … we eat together every night, sometimes around the coffee table (if OH isn’t home in time for tea) mostly the dinner table … I have a theory that our parents teach us tables manners so we can leave home and eat on the lounge only to teach our kids table manners so they can leave home and we can eat on the lounge again … luckily I have my girls convinced they wont need a phone until they are 15 … thanks for the blog, am researching them for uni (multimodal literacy, who knew)

By: thinkthinkers

thinkthinkers — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 01:38:43 +0000

Ha. I get the path of least resistance thing. My theory is that you have to pick your battles and you catch more flies with honey. Phone is Not Negotiable though. I made that rule four years ago and I’m sticking to it. (Out-stubborning the stubborn…)

I do rock out the “because I said so” at times, and get the “But that’s not faaaaaaaaiiiirrrr” in return. To which I reply “Life’s not fair. Get over it.”

Man, I sound terrible. I do explain when explanation and reason is required. I think when I say “because I said so” it means that the reason is glaringly obvious. I also substitute “why do you think?” when they say “but why?” or also “because Y’s a crooked letter and you can’t straighten it” which is a Dadism as well.

By: TheRealSydney

TheRealSydney — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 14:24:51 +0000

I love your rules, do you say “because I said so” when you are met with a “but why”? I love parents who say that and stick to it.

I was terrible at rules, I’m afraid I was a path of least resistance parent … short jacket? yep you can have it, if you’re cold you’ll live – mobile phone? yep there’s an old one in my room go get it I’ll get you a pre paid SIM – colour your hair? sure it will look cute with blonde tips.

I created a monster, a pretty well accessorised monster but a monster all the same!! haha

By: thinkthinkers

thinkthinkers — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 22:47:44 +0000

Yes – this is important to us. Once my kids were a little older I stopped eating early, and waited dinner until my husband got home. We eat at 7 so we can all be together.

By: thinkthinkers

thinkthinkers — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 22:45:58 +0000

It’s hard isn’t it? Especially when these days there are such differences in the way families do things. I guess there is no right way, and everyone does what works best in their home. My kids are messy but I don’t particularly keep a perfect home, so it doesn’t bother me so much. Some friends get very cross when their kids don’t make their beds and clean their rooms, but they work full-time and need their kids to help in that way.

By: Christie

Christie — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 00:03:38 +0000

I think you stated the most important family ‘rule’ there is – “We eat dinner as a family almost every night, with the table set and the television off.” With this time for communication and connection, you have the perfect stage set to discuss and negotiate compromises on everything else!

By: MangoGirl

MangoGirl — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 23:19:18 +0000

Sometimes it feels like there are too many rules and it gets too hard. From speaking to other parents they are in the same dilemma, but funnily enough they ‘sort-of’ have the same rules. We too like everyone to sit and eat dinner at the table instead of in front of the TV, also no mobile-phones, IPods playing either. It just gets tough when their friends don’t have the same boundaries and you’re left feeling like a ‘little hitler’.

By: thinkthinkers

thinkthinkers — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 03:37:53 +0000

If you believe my kids, all other families eat meals of chewing gum and energy drinks while lying on the lounge every night, so maybe I’d rather not be normal. Or I need to get my kids to stop exaggerating.