Top Ten Things Kids Really Want Their Parents to Do With Them

After writing about our 2 week, lazy break, I stumbled upon this article through Pinterest.  It caught my interest because it is about a mom who was dedicating herself to being a Hands Free mom, which basically means, she wanted to be totally present with her kids and not distracted by email/Facebook updates/to-do lists, etc.  Since I feel like I can be a completely distracted mom, opting out of that video game with Elijah, or half-heartedly playing Barbies, or telling the kids to "wait, just a minute" so many times they grow tired, this article hit a big nerve.  I am not posting it all, but thought if anyone else feels similar guilt, they might like to read one part that I'm copying from the blog by Rachel Macy Stafford. I skip around a little for the sake of length so you may want to go to the site yourself to read it all.

I thought it was worth reading.  Maybe you will too.
Enjoy!
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 We ALL want to do the things that matter to our children in the precious time we are given. In other words, we want to do the things that will stick with them, shape them, and cause them to look back on their childhood with happiness.

So what exactly are the things that kids remember? Would you believe there is a list of such items derived from children themselves?

When I stumbled on this list of what kids love their parents to do, I felt as if I discovered the proverbial pot of gold at the end of a “Hands Free” rainbow. . . .

A wise teacher named Erin Kurt happened to have the insight to ask her students what they most liked their parents to do with them. She asked this same question every year for 16 years and from these responses she revealed, “The Top 10 Things Kids Want From Parents.”

Be prepared to be surprised.

Be prepared to be hopeful.

Be prepared to give yourself a celebratory high five, because the news is good, my friends.

And if you are like me, you might even have unexpected tears. Because the things your kids will remember are a lot easier to do than we often overly-pressured parents have been led to believe. And you might already be doing some of them.

The Top Ten Things Kids Really Want Their Parents To Do With Them

1. Come into my bedroom at night, tuck me in and sing me a song. Also tell me stories about when you were little.
2. Give me hugs and kisses and sit and talk with me privately.
3. Spend quality time just with me, not with my brothers and sisters around.
4. Give me nutritious food so I can grow up healthy.
5. At dinner talk about what we could do together on the weekend.
6. At night talk to me about about anything; love, school, family etc.
7. Let me play outside a lot.
8. Cuddle under a blanket and watch our favorite TV show together.
9. Discipline me. It makes me feel like you care.
10. 10. Leave special messages in my desk or lunch bag.

Isn’t it simple?

Isn’t it beautiful?

Isn’t it achievable?

This list inspires me so much that I taped it to my fridge. It serves as a reminder that it’s the small things we do as parents that mean the most, and it is those very same things that our kids will remember when they are grown.

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