Couldn't hurt

So I'm trying a little somethin' somethin' to help get me through Anonybabe's whiny selfish "no" phase with a little bit of my sanity intact.

I make her listen to lectures. Long (interminable for a 19 month old) ones where I explain why I want her to share, or to politely decline, or refrain from hitting me in the face when she gets frustrated.

I may be setting myself up to be tuned out forever, since she can't possibly know what the hell I'm talking about when I go into a three minute explanation of the golden rule. But I sure do feel a lot better after explaining to her/myself why certain behaviors just aren't acceptable. It's like I'm giving myself a pep talk.

It makes me feel a little less forlorn. A little less deer-in-the-headlightsy.

I heard an interview once with a woman who had some sort of non-traditional family situation. I think she and her husband used a surrogate. And even though her daughter was far too young to understand, she was already telling her. She said she'd been telling her since she was in the womb, and that it was mostly for her benefit. She figured this was a way to practice articulating why and how they did what they did and what it meant to her.

I like that. Explaining before it's necessary. For the practice. So you're comfortable with it. And because you never know how early something might stick, so might as well start tossing, just in case.