Friday, 18 July 2008
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Interacting with Your Kids
by Mama WhaleI personally believe that interacting with your child is very important. It's part of the bonding that your child grows up with when they get older. As a mother I've been spending as much time as I can with my daughter rather than using the computer obsessively.
I have to admit that I've been a bad mother who doesn't interact with my daughter as much as other mothers. I've been cooped at home and can't find any other good ways to interact with her. Either way there is no excuse for me. I started to pick up habits to read to her and also talk with her as much as I can. On a daily basis, I take her to library to read with her and let her play with other kids.
I should really take this opportunity to do more with her since the weather is warm enough to go out with her. Otherwise the interactions will get less and less when she gets older and I don't want to regret it when the time comes.
How much do you interact with your children? Do you have memories of interacting with your parents when you were a child?
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Comments (7)
My mom reading to me is one of the very first memories I have.
She would always read and sing to me, I loved it.
I also remember her taking me to the local park a lot, and pushing me on the swings on our swing set. There is also an ice cream place not too far from our first house, and my parents, my brother and I would walk there some evenings to get an ice cream come.
I hate when I see kids trying so hard to get their parents' attention and their parents completely ignore them. I feel like the number one thing kids need is love and affection.
Kids are people just like we are, so I don't think that having a conversation with your baby or toddler is too crazy. You are treating them like a human being, and you are teaching them to be one! :)
I sometimes get tempted to use D's happy moods (when he's fine playing by himself) to get some computer time in, but I try to not fall into that as those moods are also times when he's the funnest to play with. I try to read to him often, play games, etc.
I actually don't have many memories of my dad actively interacting with me as a kid, I think he was more of a passive observer (tells so many stories now about all the things we used to do and say). I've never had any negative views of him from it, but it's been more as an adult that I've felt closer to him.
I can still remember longing for my parents attention. My dad worked 2nd or 3rd shift when I was young and my mom worked as well. I had to go to a baby sitter on some days as my dad was sleeping and other days I could come home since he was home. My mom went back to school when I was in the 4th grade. They didn't have much time for me. When they got home they usually cleaned or watched TV. I always hated that I never got to do any after school activities as my parents were at work and couldn't take me home.
Now in saying all of this, I some how still knew my parents loved me deeply. I knew that they were doing this so I could have a good life, but yet I still longed for them. Once I was old enough for my brother to watch me (he was 7years older) I would come home from school to an empty house (he wasn't so watchful, haha) and lay on my parents bed and just smell their pillows.
Ok now I feel like i have dissed my parents. They really do love me and my mom is now my best friend. But because of their parenting I knew i could never be a working mom. I wanted to be there more for my kids. And now I am on the computer WAY too much, and watch WAY too much TV...it is just so hard to get out of the rut we get in. Thanks for the reminder to get down and play with my kids while I still can!
You're right about one thing. When our children is still young, that's when we should interact with them as much as possible. When they get to be a teenager and older, then they wouldn't want to interact with us anymore.
Try nature hunts. treasure hunts when you go outside. For instance, it's a good time to talk about God and creation and the gifts that He has given us full of whimsy....such as butterflies. My grandson and I used to call them "God's Treasures'. It may be full of nothing but pine cones and rocks but nothing was left undiscussed. same thing with driving along in the car....pointing out cows and horses and flags and trucks. Also, I would call my neighborhood "Nana's Kingdom" so when we turned into my neighborhood, I would start talking about my kingdom. Interaction is always ongoing.....
I am a stay at home mom. I try to interact with my 7 1/2 month old son as much as possible. Right now though, he's going through an independent phase where he just wants to explore his play area (the living room or wherever we happen to be) by himself with me watching on the sidelines. i believe this is good for him and while I miss playing with him all day every day, I am happy to see my baby boy in the process of becoming an independent self sufficient human being.
My mom stayed home with us growing up. She needed her space but also made time to play wtih us and sing to us daily, especially at bedtime. As we got older she relied on us more to play with each other (i have a younger brother who is a year and a half younger than me) so she could watch her soaps.
@PrincessBrideJo@xanga - you made me want to cry with that pillow description! That's what I would do when my parents would go out for the night on occasion! I was such a clingy kid; I would love going to my grandparents or having my cousins babysit me when my parents went to bible study or on a date, but it would be torture for me as well because i would miss them so much. I was one of those kids that cried in second grade on occasion wanting my mommy or daddy- how pathetic, huh!