One of my rules as a parent is to "say yes whenever possible." I try to reserve my "no" for important things, and to never just say no because something is inconvenient or would interrupt me a bit. So when the girls asked if they could wear their hair up in a messy bun when we went to a festival recently, instead of going with my initial instinct, which was, "that will take 10 minutes, and I want to leave right now," I took a deep breath, grabbed a brush, and just said, "yes."
They were so proud of their hair that day. Every time they passed a mirror in a restaurant, or saw their reflection in a store window, they would say something like, "I look so cute!" or "Look at my hair--it's still up!"
I was so glad I said, "yes," and really, who cares if we left ten minutes later than I had planned? Sometimes I have to remind myself to let my "no" be reserved for the big stuff, and to say "yes" whenever possible.
What have you said "yes" to lately that brought your family a bit of happiness?
Our Sunday School teacher practices this method as well. Too bad I never remember to do it when I am with Nixon. That must be why he told his teacher "NO!" yesterday...
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