How to ensure a troubled psyche in your offspring (mine and some anonymous traveler's)


While Sören and I were eating breakfast this morning, I had the guilty pleasure of listening in on another fathers' conversations, or rather, exhortations, with his children. He had a daughter and son, both of whom had to be under five years old. Among some of the parenting tips I pass on to you, my faithful readers, at no charge...
⁃ "Your mother has a special camera. She can see everything you're doing. It's on the internet. So, behave!"
⁃ "Honey, when you don't listen to me in the restaurant, you make me look like a bad daddy. All the other daddies in the restaurant will look at how you're behaving and think I don't know how to be a good daddy. And I know you think I'm the best daddy in the world, don't you want other daddies to think I'm a good daddy, too?" (At this point, let me interject that I was, in fact, judging his parenting abilities, but not so much based on his daughter's behavior...)

Now, I say all this with a strong caveat. I am not sure I am a worthy father, myself. Sören has been really tired on this trip and has not felt like doing much outdoor activities, or eating on a regular basis, so far on this trip, and has had one very public meltdown and one meltdown in our room this afternoon before lunch. And I don't really know how to be patient with her, and still get my way as her father. And my way, for this trip, =
* Feeding her three meals a day, hopefully at least one with one tiny bit of vegetables
* Skiing or snowshoeing at least twice in the week we are here
* Seeing her evoke some self-discipline. Maybe not on this vacation. Maybe when she's 25. But some time before I die.

Posted: Thu - December 28, 2006 at 03:45 PM        

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