Do I have spinach in my teeth?

About a year ago, I was given an article called “Spinach in your Teeth”. At first glance, I thought…”maybe I have green stuff in my teeth often” and this parent is giving me a hint! But after reading on, I realized the catchy title took me much deeper…

You know, kids truly say the darndest things – they are so honest…sometimes brutally so! I love the days when a middle schooler says, “I like your shoes” or when a Kindergartner says “you have a pretty dress”. But, there are some days when I have to laugh (instead of cry or hide) when a Second Grader says “your shoes don’t match” or when a Preschooler says “why is your hair like that?”

After reading this article, it makes me realize that the children tell me these things because they care about me (or maybe their filter isn't completely developed), but regardless, I feel better knowing they are being honest with me.

I liked the comparison of feedback to criticism. As the article states, few of us have an easy time either giving it or receiving it! We know that in our heads we need feedback; but our hearts don’t want to hear it. Feedback is truly a caring gesture!

So, if you and I are having a wonderful chat or simply saying hello…please let me know if I have toilet paper on my shoe, marker on my face, or spinach in my teeth! I’ll know the feedback is meaningful and important and that you care!

Enjoy the article!

Spinach in your Teeth Messages: The Art of Giving (and Receiving) Honest Feedback By Beth Keane, BA, MA, Studer Group National Speaker

Marshmallows and self-discipline? A new kind of s'mores!

I have to admit, I do love chocolate and most things made of chocolate. If someone put a Hostess Ho-Ho or a chocolate doughnut in front of me...look out.

But, what if someone put one of these items in front of me and told me I could either eat it now, or wait until they returned (45 minutes later) and THEN I could have two! What would I do? Choose the fun, fast, immediate, now? Or take the “good things happen to those who wait” route?

In the following video clip, four year old children were given the same self-discipline test. 

The implication is that children who learn to wait are more self-disciplined in life. They can forego the “I need it now” and appreciate what comes “to those who wait”.

In today’s world, we are used to immediate satisfaction – no time to wait, too much traffic, very little time between one activity and the next, too many toys in the playroom, and the list goes on and on! Sometimes giving in is easier than the alternative! After watching this video, and reflecting on my own life in Elementary and Middle School (watching Gilligan’s Island, climbing trees, playing outside until dinner, knowing that when Mom or Dad said no…they meant it), I realize there are some changes I would like to make in my own family! There are parameters that should be more firmly set and adhered to.

Maybe I’ll start with this marshmallow test for the entire family!!!!