Creative Punishment

Grounding, time out, and spankings not working? Get creative! Recently Mama's older son decided that while he could do the work it was just too much of an effort to turn it in. He promptly went from an A to an F...in 6th grade reading. For the record - precious little sweetums reads and comprehends on a college level. He was not bored; his teacher lets him read what he wants to read. Mama's third grade little precious has developed a mouth. Grounding did not seem to truly solve either issue.

Yes, one little sweetums turned in his school work and brought his grade up to a B....but did he learn a lesson? Somehow, Mama doubted it.

Yes, one mouthy little sweetums stopped running his mouth for about a day, but went right back to it.

So Mama decided a little creative punishment was in order. When we do not get good grades, we do not usually go to college. While it is possible to get a good job without a degree (Dear Old Dad is a fine example of that), it is a bit more likely that one would be able to move out of the basement if one had a college degree....note that Mama said "more likely" because she does know what the economy is like. When we get mouthy with a boss, we lose our job. Either way - the work one can eventually do is very limited.

To prepare them or expose to them to their probable future Mama had them move the table, the dog crate, and the dog food out of the kitchen. Our kitchen is rather small. Those were the only things Mama could get away with making them move without being accused of abuse.

They each took a turn sweeping the floor...even under the cabinets. Then, Mama made a sink full of Mr. Clean with Febreze and a rag. Yes, that's right. Mama had her precious little sweetums scrub the floor on their hands and knees.

Idle hands at school = not so idle hands at home. Smart mouth at home = needing something to keep the mind busy.

We are the proud owners of a sparkling kitchen floor and should it be required...we do have two bathrooms.

They have decided that school work and holding of the tongue are far easier than scrubbing a floor on their hands and knees.

God help us...

Jesus, I come to you right now in Your Precious, Precious Name and I ask You to bring peace beyond understanding to the families involved at Ft. Hood. Keep them, be with them, and comfort them as only You can. We don't know why people do the things that they do. It's a fallen world and we are all sinful. Thank You, God, for contending with those that contend with Your people. Above all, we praise You because we know that You love those families and the people involved more than we could ever possibly conceive.

IN Jesus' Precious Name....

Please, little darlings, keep Ft. Hood and those involved in your prayers. Prayer warriors - rise up!

Discipline - The Parental Stimulus Package

Parents - are you tired of your 26 year old kid with the Masters degree living in your basement with no job? Parents - are you tired of your six year old pitching fits in the middle of sprawl-mart that make you wish you could literally stick duct tape over their mouths?

Mama and the Conservative Liberal would like to introduce all of you parents to an excellent stimulus package. As a matter of fact she agrees with Mama that the best way to save the nation in the future is to start working on it now. What does that consist of?

It consists of parents stopping the nonsense of being their child's "friend" and realize that they are the parent. It consists of parents realizing that discipline is a good thing. Would you just let your dog pee in the floor? No, not if you are a normal, sane person. Would you just let a dog bite your kid on the leg? No, not if you were a good parent.

So, America, the question is why aren't you parenting? This Mama and the Conservative Liberal did not give birth to your children and as such....we do not wish to be subjected to ill tempered, misbehaving, self-centered brats in public. Yes, Mama and the Conservative Liberal both understand that melt downs happen. Sometimes that two year old just will not stop crying. That does not mean that you beat them in the middle of the store...but you do take them out of the store and you leave your stuff behind. Mama does not care if it makes extra work for you...if you had them, you need to raise them. If they are old enough to know right from wrong you have two choices - remove them from the situation or do not be afraid to exercise your parental control in public. Mama is not above swatting a behind in public and neither should you if the situation warrants it.

Think of it this way - disciplining your children gives them moral and ethical responsibilities. Do you want a self-centered child choosing your nursing home or do you want a rational, compassionate adult child choosing your nursing home?

Moral of the story - do not be above disciplining your child in public. Mama agrees that not all children respond to the same type of discipline. Spanking is not child abuse, but you do not spank for every single offense. Yet time out does not work for every single offense; neither does grounding. In short, get to know your child and discipline accordingly.

What does it take to get to know your child? Spend time with them. By spending time with them you build a relationship with them. Mama does not agree that quality will necessarily beat quantity. Do you really think they are going to remember the one time you took them to the amusement park or the fifteen times you played Slap Jack with them while they were sick with strep throat?

So just how does one discipline after getting to know their child? The answer is not simple as there are many forms of discipline. One my precious little sweetums responds better to grounding and one responds better to time out. The key to ensuring a better next generation that will not run our country into the ground is follow through. Do not just say, "You get over here or I'll....." You go get them and you follow through.

Mama's experienced one too many parents look at her in church and say, "How do you get my child to mind you so well? They don't listen at home." They key is follow through. If Mama gives a warning and tells a child if they do it again there will be a consequence (such as a naughty spot or not getting to color) then Mama follows through. Sure they will test you...but you've been here longer......so you better have more will power.

Parents! Parents! Parents! Discipline is your friend. There's nothing wrong with making a child feel good and praise them. That's part of the stimulus plan for a better nation. Children must know that you approve of them or that they have done a good time, but don't lie to them. The problem with the feel good generation is that they think they are good at something when, in reality, they suck. We, as Americans, cannot compete with the Japanese or other advanced nations if we continue to just pet and praise instead of poke and prod.

Ghandi (pick a spelling...Mama found two on the 'net...Gandhi and Ghandi) said that we should become the change we want to see. Do you want your children to react with more patience and self control? Then show them how by being a good example instead of medicating them into oblivion. Medication is not discipline and should only be used after many, many, many opinions, visits, and consistent follow through.

Mama suggests that you should read the following books:

How To Behave So Your Children Will Too

The Bible (Mama thinks that you would be surprised to find the great parenting advice in there...regardless of whether or not you are a Christian)

Short of it - if you want a national stimulus package that will work for generations to come....be a parent instead of a friend. They will have plenty of friends...they will have only one set of parents.

Really?!

All Mama can say is...seriously?! Can you say violation of the First Amendment? What ever happened to wanting our children to be individuals? Shame on McDonald's! They are grounded!!

A lesson for men...

Mama thinks this guy is right on!

Nobel Peace Prize

Now this whole thing is just getting silly!

Mama agrees with the President...she's not quite sure why he was awarded with it.

Let's start with the fact that there is a process involved.

1. Invitations go out in September.

2. Nominations are due in February. (By the way - Mama can't find him in the database as a nominee because those records are sealed for 50 years...my, isn't that convenient...).

3. A short list is made in March and it is reviewed through August.

4. In October they pick.

5. In December they award.

We do not give awards and tell people to earn it...and why should we, as a country, strive to earn something for a President that wasn't nominated and that understands that there was really no reason for him to be awarded it. We still have starving children. He's ramping up for more troops to go to Afghanistan. Sure, he's been buddy buddy with some really "peaceful" guys if you count Hugo Chavez as peaceful.

Can Mama go ahead and award her little darlings with the honor of being valedictorian even though her darlings are in 6th and 3rd grades? Can Mama do that even though the sixth grader is bringing home two Cs and a D? Would it make any sense at all for Mama to tell him, at that point, to go earn it?

Awards are there for those that did something to deserve it. That's why it is an award. It wouldn't mean anything if we just started randomly giving out awards.

For the silly, silly liberals that think we conservatives just hate the President because we don't think he deserves it...don't be so illogical. Obama, then, must hate himself as well as many of his own constituents..

Mama has yet to have anyone address the school award scenario. Shall we just award Florida or Texas the BCS trophy now for college football? They haven't won yet, but hey...if we're just going to hand out awards....

Can you imagine if something like that would have taken place with a conservative in office? Talk about a backlash and a double standard! Oh and let's not forget how "peaceful" it is to call those with a differing opinion (such as this one) hateful....

The shame!

Shame on the managers of the Empire State Building! Red, white, and blue coloring during July or red and green during the Christmas season is one thing. Honoring countries like Canada and Australia...well Mama guesses that's okay, too. Why in the world are they lighting up the Empire State Building in red and yellow to celebrate China's communist take over?! If we, as a nation, condemn that sort of socialism (at least we say that we do...) should one of our most famous buildings be applauding it?

Why honor a country that kills millions and killed close to 26 million people during the revolution that brought communism? Mama's real question is....what do they have on American leaders that American leaders were so quick to let this happen and allow it to continue?