Awards for Excellence in Parenting

the “Keep Your Eyes on the Prize” Award (aka the “Oxygen Mask Goes on You First” award)

Cleric at Large — Fri, 04 Feb 2011 12:54:15 +0000

Yup. Laundry needs to be done.
and Dishes need washing.
And someone really should do something about the state of the living room.

But that someone isn’t you. You are already busy.
You are healing. And it is going to take time. And some of that time is going to be spent sitting in a mess.
And it will look, to some people, like you are doing nothing.
And it will feel, some of the time, like you are doing nothing.

But you are very busy. You are healing.
And if you don’t do this the very best way you know how, there’s only going to be more unfinished laundry, more unwashed dishes, and more disastrous living room in your future.

Congratulations! By remembering that healing is doing something (and something more important than laundry) you have achieved Excellence in Parenting!

the “S/He Aint Heavy” award

Cleric at Large — Fri, 04 Feb 2011 12:48:03 +0000

You are not the parent.
But a parent that you love was not incapacitated by illness or injury, and you stepped up.
You did some laundry, you washed some dishes, prepared some meals, provided some child care…
You asked what would be the most helpful thing, and then you did it.

Congratulations. By being part of the village that it takes to raise a child, you have achieved Excellence in Parenting!

the “Who are These Children, and Why do they Keep Calling me ‘Mommy’” Award

Cleric at Large — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 22:43:42 +0000

So much for family resemblance!

You’re quiet and self-contained – he’s outgoing and rambunctious.
You’re all about the team sports – she just needs a good book.
You’re a night owl – he’s up at dawn.
You’re cat people. She wants a dog.

And somehow, that’s all okay. Variety is the spice of life. You’re helping them grow into the best possible versions of themselves. Not carbon copies of you.

Congratulations! By recognizing that clones would just be too much of a good thing, but your confident kids are just what the world needed, you have achieved Excellence in Parenting!

the “Because Mary at School says she Comes from Baltimore” award

Cleric at Large — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 00:20:50 +0000

Your beloved asked you one of Life’s Awkward Questions^tm
And you answered with the truth. The age-appropriate, nothing-to-be-ashamed-of-here truth.

As it turns out, that wasn’t really the information they were looking for. But now you have an answer ready for when they are.

Congratulations! By speaking the truth with love, you have achieved Excellence in Parenting!

the “Do these Stains Match my Shoes?” award

Cleric at Large — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 13:24:22 +0000

You’ve scored the trifecta!
That favourite article of clothing- the one that makes you feel polished, professional, ready to make any presentation or take on any difficult client?

It has been peed on.
It has been bled on.
It has been barfed on.

Congratulations! By knowing that sometimes you just have to hold the one you love, and let the wardrobe disaster happen, you have achieved Excellence in Parenting!

the “Oh Sweetie! The Lead in the School Play, how WONDERFUL” Award

Cleric at Large — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 17:06:59 +0000

Your dear little monkey came home with homework– for YOU!

And, yes, you could have stayed up all night for a week, striving for perfection. But instead you did a little bit of cost/benefit analysis, decided that perfection isn’t all its cracked up to be, and you didn’t really need the pressure to be even more perfect next time. You did a good enough job, you did it with love, and then you called it a night.

Congratulations! By remembering that “Good Enough” is both 1) good and 2) enough, you have achieved Excellence in Parenting!

the “I Wouldn’t Change a Single Thing About You, my Beloved” award

Cleric at Large — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 13:56:47 +0000

You wouldn’t think twice about saying that to your kid, would you?

This year, you resolved to say it to yourself.

You resolved to skip the self-deprecating humour (that isn’t really funny). You chose to cut out the trash talk about yourself (if a friend said it about you- they would very quickly become an ex-friend). You’re going to look in a mirror and find things to love about yourself (the way you can find things to love about all the other people you, you know, love).

You’re going to feed your body good foods, and find ways to move it that make it feel great. You are going to stop reading magazines that tell you how to fix your flaws. Because you don’t have flaws; you have character.

Your kids are growing up with a whole lot of messages about how bodies are wrong, and need to be changed; subdued; restrained; diminished. But they aren’t going to hear it from you.

Congratulations! By setting a self-confident, body-loving example you have achieved Excellence in Parenting.

the “You Said I Couldn’t Do it but I Could! I Did! And I Could Do it Again, Let’s Do it Again!” Award

Cleric at Large — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 16:16:34 +0000

They are always going to want to try new things. And sometimes they are going to fail. But you create opportunities for them to succeed, learn new things, become competent in new arenas, and expand their sphere of responsibility and control over their own affairs. Because, after all, someday you want them to be able to do everything on their own, without you.

(Otherwise they’ll NEVER MOVE OUT!)

Congratulations! By remembering that the whole point of this exercise is that your little baby is, indeed, growing up you have achieved Excellence in Parenting!

the “If it’s Dinner Time, this must be Dinner” award

Cleric at Large — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 04:32:21 +0000

Not every meal is a culinary masterpiece.

You put good food in front of them. You try to make sure they maintain a nodding acquaintance with all the food groups. You give them opportunities to try new things. You trust that your toddler, despite all appearances, probably has a strong survival instinct and will eventually stave off starvation. It may not always be pretty- but you provide them with what they need.

Congratulations! By following the first rule of good nutrition* you have achieved Excellence in Parenting.

*The first rule: Eat or Die

the “It’s Gonna be a Bright, Bright Sunshiney Day” Award

Cleric at Large — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 03:35:55 +0000

It is morning.

You don’t want to be up.

They don’t want to be up.

But you have places to go, and things to do. And miles to go before you sleep.

Congratulations! By getting everyone dressed, fed, prepped, and out the door (when the only place you ALL want to be is sleeping) you have achieved Excellence in Parenting.