A Spoonful of Common Sense

My oldest daughter is about to have her first baby. She is, as we all were, nervous about the parenting challenges that lie ahead. I told her that it is a waste of her energy to worry about the teen years before the teething years. Every child is as different as is every parent who walks miles through the parenting maze. I have often chastised my own mother for not warning me that this job doesn't end once your child blows out 18 candles on their birthday cake. But I have learned it is the one job that you never retire from and rarely live long enough to see the fruit of your labor.

I read many of the mommy blogs to see how the new generation views discipline. I would like to offer a dose of common sense. Here are five basic lessons every child should learn.

#5 Good manners - please and thank you are always appreciated but thank you cards should be sent to those who give a gift, do a kindness, for a teacher or a friend. It is an art that has gone by the way side but makes a huge difference, now and as an adult habit.

#4 Responsibility - no matter how young, children should learn to clean up after themselves. If they take it out, help them to pick it up when they are done. Oh, and set the example...pick up after yourself.

#3 Read! - This is a difficult lesson, but reading is obviously something your child will use for the rest of their lives, even it is as simple as reading directions. Keep it simple and let your child take the lead as to how much they want to read but one day a month (at least) should be a trip to the library. Reading to your child paves the way - and they are never too young!

#2 Tolerance - We are all different and the sooner these differences are seen as points of celebration rather than ridicule the better. Use positive words these differences whether they are of color, religion or disabilities. Be profound in your own behavior toward others.

#1 Kindness - To me this is the same as the "Golden Rule". Treat others as you wish to be treated. Sure it doesn't always work out that way, but for the most part if you smile or offer a kind word to someone, it will come back to you ten fold.

The most common sense approach I have for young parents, is to examine yourself. Buffalo Springfield said it best "Teach Your Children Well". Children imitate what they see and hear. Listen to what you say. Watch what you do. Then listen and watch them - children are a mirror.

I wrote this blog post while participating in the TwitterMoms and Nanny McPhee Returns blogging program, making me eligible to get a $50 gift card. For more information on how you can participate, click here. I decided to blog because being a grandma coming up on 6 times now, I am eligible for a t-shirt in common sense! That is what a wise grandma would do.

Road Trip!

Are there two greater words for adventure than Road Trip? Whether it be an epic journey or an epic disaster, the potential for great memories is a given.

As the saying goes, every journey begins with but a single step. So here are 10 of my best steps to having a memorable journey with the family.

1) Maps! Homegrown or commercial, learning navigational skills, geography and even how to fold them, can be valuable tools and lessons for any journey. Go beyond "turn right" from your GPS and take a giant leap for mankind. Read a map!

2) You've got the map, now let each person choose one stop along the way. Whether it be to stop and smell the best chili in the Southwest or a vista potty break, the trip can be more enjoyable with frequent stops.

3) Pack Rats are allowed to pack their own goodie bag. This can range from food stuffs to video games. You may want to limit the size of the pack or have a contest for the most interesting things packed into the pack. Winner gets "shot-gun!" for a leg of the trip!

4) All goodie bags must have one item to share with your traveling companions. This can be a game or food stuff - but everyone must be able to play or eat at the same time.

5) Create your own postcards. Take digital photos of the group at different stops. Find a local Walmart, Costco, Target...any major chain to download photos and make prints. Most shops have creative options or slip it in an envelope after everyone has signed it. Date it and send it to grandparents, friends with a Wish You Were Here message!

6) Travelers Blogs keep those not on the journey up to date. These can take the form of a computer blog (stopping at an internet cafe or wifi hotel) or a written journal. Each person should take a day to journal. If they are too young to write, do it for them but use their words.

7) Interviews can be exciting and informative. Assign your reporting crew to interview different people along the way. Interviews can range from the fellow at the gas station, the hotel clerk, park ranger or a ride operator at an amusement park. Reporters may need help so have a list of questions ready for them to choose.

8) Autographs are a fun souvenir to collect. Like the old souvenir stamps on trunks, you can find fun scrapping ways to display the autographs from random people you meet. A napkin, a receipt or ticket stub can be a fun thing to collect when it is signed by a "not-so-famous-yet" person along the way. A great addition to the photo album.

9) Hunt and gather wherever you go. Put together bundles of bits and pieces you find along the way. A twig from a nature hike, a straw wrapper at the burger joint, sea shells, rocks, moss, tickets...doesn't matter. Bundle them and in the winter months, burn them in a campfire or fireplace as a way to start a conversation about where you found them and the memories of the trip.

10) What was the best part of your trip and the worst is a fun way to debrief after any road trip. It makes planning the next trip easier and brings lots of giggles in hind sight.

Road trips are a fun way to bring families together and just get the conversation going. We traveled across country with 5 siblings, 1 grandma and my parents in a station wagon and the funniest memory was the diapers flying off the top of luggage rack. Now that is a disaster - over 45 years later we still laugh about it. Even my 80 year old parents!

Share your favorite traveling tips with families at TwitterMoms. That's what a wise grandma would do!

Happiest Place on Earth

Where is the Heart of Your Home? When posed this question by Megan Calhoun at TwitterMoms as part of a Samsung Appliances contest I had to admit my answer was probably unexpected. Seems like no matter what is going on in the house or how many people are over, they congregate in the kitchen. You are trying to cook and they are standing with fingers poised to dip, lick or sip your culinary work. What's that old saying? Too many cooks spoil the broth?

That is probably why the best meeting place in my house is the music studio. What cooks in there requires cooperation, collaboration and imagination. Sweet sounds, tasty melodies and tempting rhythms percolate from the hands of many cooks. The music studio is where my grandchildren run to when they arrive (that is after they hit the cookie jar) and parents flock to hear budding musicians marvel at their own concoctions.

The room is filled with musical instruments from the mundane to absurd. From piano to water bottle drums, there are a variety of ways that the non-musician (though I don't believe there is such a thing) can add a bit of spice to the mix. It is fun to watch their faces as they discover some new thing I found at a garage sale or junk shop that can be used to make savory sounds. We play, sing, dance and most of all laugh at the cacophony of youngster and oldster and in-betweener in a room cooking up a recipe for fun.

The recipe is simple. Create a space where people can at once feel compelled to join together and contribute. Whether it be your kitchen, your family room or in my case a place that speaks the language of music, the best room in the house is where family comes together to laugh, love and communicate. That is the happiest place on earth. 

So where is the heart of your home? That is what a Wise Grandma wants to know!