Parenting One Liners

In February, I wrote a bit about using a script with Zeke to help him overcome his fear of swimming lessons.  Really, scripts are just an awesome, no brain involved way to parent, a one line response.  Okay, maybe there is some brain power involved but having a few well rehearsed parenting scripts can literally make your life tons easier.  It gives you a quick response that doesn't involve you overreacting and also can become a bit of a mantra that your children may find themselves repeating as they grow up.

I suppose my years as a teacher might be why I love parenting scripts so much.  Teachers use scripts all the time.  If you've ever wondered how a teacher manages a room full of 6 year olds, scripts are part of the deal.  A good teacher will have scripts to get the class' attention.  Things like "1-2-3, eyes on me!"  Or choral refrains where the teacher says one thing and the class replies back.  The class hears the teacher say, "Goodness gracious!' and then echoes, "Great balls of fire!" That simple echo helps get the class' attention.

Here are a few of my favorites that I say a lot with my kids at home:

For my daughter when she is struggling with feeling loved-"You are loved.  You are special.  You were made by God."

For the moments when someone wants to argue with me-"Do you want an answer or do you want to argue?"  Or "I love you too much to argue with you."

For sibling arguments-"How could you have solved this problem without getting me involved?"  "What did you do when that happened?"  "How can you fix this problem?"  (This one works awesome if you make both kids go sit separately and then give you individual answers.  It makes the child realize that even if he was not the one who created the problem, he can help fix it.)

For inappropriate, sly, or snarky comments-"Helpful, kind or necessary?"  (Meaning if it's not one of those things, then you shouldn't be saying it.)

For a child who picks at others, just to pick-"Peace or a problem?"  (Meaning "are you creating peace or a problem?")

For lots of situations where there is disrespect, lying, rudeness, etc.-"Is that who you want to be?"  (Meaning "do you want to be someone who does _____ or do you want to be someone who does ______________ ?",the opposite of whatever they were doing.)

For kids who ask a thousand questions, especially ones that have already been answered-"What do you think?"  Or "Asked and answered."

Have any favorite one liners you like to use with your kids?  Always looking to add to my collection...