It's Not Always Easy

I just read an article on admitting to your child when you are wrong. It included some frustrations of being woken up by their child who had wet the bed. While we can't always keep our cool in every single situation,
​the part that stood out to me was this.

"But it's also easy to apologize."

See the whole article here (Angie Warren)

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This pulled at my heart strings because we all know it's sometimes tough as parents to admit to our children that we messed up. We want to be that example of perfection because we really do want what's best for them,
​and that happens to include being a perfect parent.

Rather than just pretending it never happened, admitting our imperfections to our children shows them we are not perfect and in a way, it takes pressure off of them to be perfect. I certainly am not perfect, and I will admit it. This brought up a few questions for myself. 

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Isn't the best way to teach children is by example?
​By showing your children that we are all human, that it's okay to make mistakes, that it's okay to admit when we are wrong, you are teaching your children that not everyone is perfect, parents included.

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Can a simple apology actually enrich your relationship with your child?
​I would rather admit to a failure than fake a "perfect parenthood resume" and risking the lasting hurt of some unkind words directed at a child because I couldn't admit to them that I was wrong.

 Is admission of failure going to prepare your children for the reality of life?
​Yes, I think so. Everyone is going to let you down at some point. It doesn't mean a relationship has to end because of a mistake. It might actually make it deeper. Forgiving others for mistakes is as important as forgiving yourself, too. 

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Do you think apologizing to your children is important? 
I'd love to hear what your thoughts are on this one...

Happy Parenting! 

xo Jena