I previously started a list of things that had surprised me as a parent. More of what I had not expected when I had a child, in no particular order…
- Parents of boys have to look harder to find clothes. I have walked into a store and had to ask if they carried boys’ clothes because 80% of the inventory was for girls and the boys’ rack was in the back corner.
- The more things change, the more they stay the same. My son likes Batman, Scooby Doo and Charlie Brown. Even though current computer-generated animation is much better, the oldies still hold his attention.
- Time outs work! I always thought it was a kind of strange concept to tell a child to sit as punishment. Why wouldn’t he just stand up and walk away? Well, for some reason it does send the right message. My son does refuse to sit sometimes or he throws a pillow off the sofa, but otherwise, he sits and understands there are consequences.
- Watching my son getting a vaccination when he was an infant made me cry.
- I love books but I get tired of reading the same one every night for a month.
- Hearing my son sing the ABCs is pretty cool.
- My son remembers random things I said months ago. I need to be careful.
