Good evening all.
It has been a long week and I am tired. This weekend is full of birthday parties and travel and concerts and jazz singing and seeing family and more travel.
I agree wholeheartedly with BK's rant on (some) parents. Every day I see parents who are reaping the rewards of inconsistency and over-spoiling of their children. I have tremendous respect children, even at a young age. I know they have their own wants and needs and I want them to feel as they have a valid self, a voice, even when they are young. This does NOT mean, however, that I allow them to rule the roost, be it my classroom or my home. I set rules, boundaries, and expectations because I have their best interests at heart. They might not like all the rules, but they will follow them. Where there is room for freedom and choice, I give it freely.
Toby is still too young for me to have encountered a lot of these problems, but he knows the expectations of him even now. He knows when bed time is, that he has to eat a good dinner before he gets his fruit for dessert, and that he is not allowed to touch Daddy's LCD TV screen.
Jed and I both work full time, it's true, but our situation has proven to be a good one. Toby goes to school with me, I get to watch him play and learn all day, and then we drive home together. He is my constant little companion, and I adore every minute of it.