The absolute best parenting advice I’ve ever received was from a family member almost 8 years ago. “Always trust your instincts,” they told me. So, whenever I’m second-guessing myself, whether it comes to feeding, disciplining or normal day-to-day parenting, I always think about that tidbit advice.
Our friends at Tommee Tippee are heralding this same advice with their #ParentOn campaign. #ParentOn encourages parents to ignore the unsolicited advice they may receive, trust their instincts and embrace all of the perfectly imperfect parenting moments as their children grow!
In honor of my bigger guy turning 8 in a few weeks, I thought I’d share a parenting moment that we recently had:
Went to our local ice cream shop to celebrate the first day of school. My 7 year old asked for a cone, told him to get a kiddie cup. Against my better judgement, I got him the cone. And we received a generous small scoop. Told kid to lick it so that it doesn’t fall off. Ice cream fell off. Scolded him quietly, and thought it would be a good teaching moment. Had him look at the numbers to see how long the wait would be. It was about 25 numbers back. I told him there is always a next time.
There was a teenager standing near us who watched our whole ordeal go down. As we were getting ready to leave, she handed us her ticket that was a few numbers away. She felt so bad for my kid and insisted that we have her ticket. I felt obligated to buy my kid a replacement ice cream bc of the gesture. So, I went up to buy a kiddie cup and the person who originally served me our ice cream noticed me and joked, “more ice cream?” I sighed and said, “of course my kid dropped his after a few licks.” The owners would not let me pay for my replacement after I offered several times. Instead, I paid it forward and paid for the young lady who gave us her ticket.
Originally, the teaching moment for my kid was to show him that life isn’t always fair, and that you have to deal with the consequences. But after a series of kind gestures from the young lady and then ice cream shop, the teaching moment underscored generosity and how we live in a fantastic community.
Sometimes, it’s more than just teaching a lesson and letting kids be kids. Mistakes happen and life carries on. I’m so glad I was able to learn and #ParentOn!
Giveaway
In honor of Tommee Tippee’s #ParentOn campaign, we’re giving away a set of Tommee Tippee Closer to Nature Bottles. If you could use some new bottles, tell me about a recent #ParentOn moment that you had.
