Choices

Boys Get a Close Look at the Digger
Originally uploaded by Justin and Kelly Webb

Though there are many times when I forget to use this "method" of parenting, I am a huge fan of letting the kids make their own choices. Naturally, I get to decide what they are choosing from, but it still gives them a sense of empowerment and it helps to build their confidence. For Sam, it's simply a distraction. Caleb has typically responded well to this method, though occassionally I hear "I don't like any of those choices."

Well, yesterday as I was picking Caleb up from school, his teacher stopped me and said that she had to tell me about Caleb...apparently, he calmly went up to her in class and said "Miss Keeley, you have a choice to make. You either tell Charlie to stop hitting me in the stomach, or you remove him from the classroom. It's your choice, but you need to decide what you are going to do right now." She said she thought it was funny - but at the same time, appreciated how he responded to the problem and then said "even the choices he gave me were fair and appropriate given the situation!" It's nice to hear that he deals with issues like this much better in the classroom than he does at home.