Time-out

I grew up in a home with strict rules and I was disciplined if I did not follow the rules accordingly. I was hit as a child and I still remember how I felt being physically punished. There was a lot of shame associated with being hit.

Fast forward thirty years and I am now disciplining my own child. Audrey is not even two yet, so I don’t know exactly how the future will play out, but for right now I am choosing to avoid physical punishment. Even though she is young, my husband and I have however found forms of discipline that do work on Audrey. We started the concept of time-out early on, for when she didn’t listen or demonstrated bad behavior. We give her choices and let her make “a good decision”. If she doesn’t, there are consequences whether she loses what she is playing with, doesn’t get the treat she wanted, or goes into time-out. Sometimes it’s all three! We make her clean up after herself, put her toys away, put her socks in the hamper, and say goodbye and hug her grandparents when they leave. Some people would say we are too strict and instilling too many rules at such a young age, and others would say its okay to spank or use physical force on a rowdy toddler.

As parents we have our own choices on how to raise and discipline our children. There are days were I can remain calm during an Audrey storm and there are other days when I feel like I am the storm and may lose it over something that isn’t significant. In those moments I have to discipline myself, give myself a time-out, remember my daughter is watching and I too need to make a good decision.