Choice and Accountability...........

It's a strikingly beautiful day. The kind that demands rejuvenation and produces inspiration. For once I was glad for the early morning walk to school. The little girls and I just kept walking after the drop off and didn't stop until we ended up in a field laying in the wet grass watching the sun rise higher and higher. Grace yelled things at the horse lazily munching grass but the only words she knows are "Popsicle" and "Jesus" so he didn't seem offended.
Sometimes Mondays are nice.
They force you to get up and start again.
Re-evaluate, Simplify, make better choices.
Sometimes Mondays are nice.

This particular Monday brought a beautiful gift......a week of blue skies and sunshine.
(Exit tropical storm Lee)
After lasts week never ending rainstorm and thick cloud cover, it was a nice gift.
Don't get me wrong, I adore a good thunderstorm.
A good stormy, cloudy day can be invigorating.
But this storm felt heavy and draggy and drizzley long.
It's nice to see the sky poke through.

But alas I digress.......a beautiful morning can do that to me.
Get my heart beating fast and my thoughts all stirred up.

Where were we?
Oh yeah, Choice and Accountability.
A concept of much discussion at my house lately.
My children seem to have a hard time recognizing who's actually at fault when they get in trouble.
This bothers me because the punishment I'm working so hard at enforcing doesn't work if they don't sit there and think about what THEY can do differently.
Please by all means sit there and be mad, just as long as you recognize that the person you should be mad at is you.
Which is hard for them.
Because they think they're always right.
I think they get this from Ben's side of the family.
(Oh come on, that was kind of funny)

This past week brought two separate occasions in which a "go sit on your bed and think about that" was in order.
On the 1st occasion I happened to over hear this little interlude.....
Luke to Olivia "Don't you think mom is kind of a bossy boots?"
Olivia to Luke "oh she totally is."

Ok first of all I think gossip is rude. And second of all, I'M THE BOSS. I"M SUPPOSED TO TELL YOU WHAT TO DO- HENCE THE TITLE "MOTHER."
Third of all, that has nothing to do with why you are sitting on your bed.....remember that little thing called your actions?
Fourth of all, I wasn't wearing boots.

On the second occasion I went in to talk with Olivia after a period of "thinking" time on her bed. She was quiet and looked quite repentant. I gently asked her "now tell me what did you do wrong? and how would you change it next time?"
Olivia:"well you know I've been laying here thinking and I really blame technology. I mean I've been cooped up all week and been around it way too much. I'm just a better obedient girl when I'm outside."
Ok a timeout well spent. It's nice to know your really looking deep inside.

That said, she had me.
Her theory was spot on, just not as the scapegoat she wanted it to be.
I mean who am I to argue with that.
I too am a better obedient girl when I can go outside.

Justification of our mistakes is such a easy thing to do.
It's frustrating when they do it.
Yet it makes perfect sense when I do it.
Owning up is one of those necessary lessons we have to teach our kids.
To learn to be entirely accountable.
Being a parent is humbling.
Accountability is another one of those lessons I preach,
that when I am alone with my thoughts makes my hypocritical self cringe.