On Parenting

I never thought I'd be a lenient parent, but we had a discussion about Santa at our small group this week that started to make me feel like one in some ways. :) Confession: my kids watch Disney Princess movies, bad guys and all. We talked them through the scary part once or twice and now they remind each other that Prince Eric comes to the rescue, and they are excited to see how it turns out, each time. We tell our kids about Santa, and probably will do the Tooth Fairy too. I let my kids jump and climb on the furniture often sometimes. There are times when you're 2 and you're coloring, and the most convenient position is on top of the dining room table. Plus, with 11 months of winter around here (not that I'm frustrated;), they have to be able to play somewhere! If they want to run around and it isn't hurting anybody and their noise level isn't higher than the general roar, we usually let them. The exception to this (that comes to mind) is restaurants. People often tell us they are amazed at how well our kids behave at restaurants. We require them to sit still and keep their voices low, and they have had lots of practice since we like to do that as a family.

But my kids know how to pray for each other and us. When someone is sick or hurt, they usually ask to pray before Nick and I even think of it. We require them to be kind to each other, no exceptions. They love to read Bible stories, and specifically ask for ones about Jesus. The way we eat is very strict, out of necessity. They say please and thank you. They love to help put away the silverware and their toys. Hannah is working on making her bed and does it with joy. The girls love to pile in the rocking chair with me and read books for 45 minutes at a time. They love to sit at the piano and bang and sing. Hannah's even making up her own songs already.

It's fascinating to me to see the contrast between families, and I (don't miss this part!) wholeheartedly believe that what God has told one family to emphasize may be completely different for another family. We are currently reading Grace Based Parenting, and have been mostly challenged by it in the area of understanding God's unconditional love to us, the parents. Only after understanding God's love can we pass it to our children. He doesn't love us based on our performance, but based on Jesus' sacrifice for us and the perfect holiness in God's sight that we receive through faith in Christ. Incredible.

What about you? What are your non-negotiables with your kids? What things (that other people might be strict about) do you let slide?