How can setting limits help you?
It’s a snow day in New Orleans. If you look outside, there’s no snow. But just the threat of snow, and it’s nefarious cousin, ICE, have
closed down NOLA schools, businesses, and roads. Thus, most of us have spent the past couple of days at home, trying to stay warm and entertained.
The kids are going wild…
We have lots of kids running around the house today, ours and their friends. They’re loud. They’re messy. They spill stuff and don’t naturally clean up. They need limits.
Limits help me meet their needs, help the kids organize their needs, and help us negotiate our sanity – thus making us both happy.
First, I limited where the kids could play – in 1 or 2 particular areas. Next I put a limit on what they could do, and more importantly what they were not allowed to do. For example, we noticed that we were cleaning up a lot of food items, so we gave everyone a snack, and then closed the kitchen and pantry for a few hours, until dinner. We suggested 2-3 activities, and the kids settled on a card game and making up dances to their favorite songs. The dog was struggling to find contentment, so he got to spend a quite hour in his crate, napping. When the kids pushed the limits, they were gently reminded of the limits, and this seemed to provide all of us some comfort and much needed structure.
Limits are beautiful (and provide lots of comfort)
Some of you need to set some limits…
- in what you spend ($)
- in what you eat and drink
- in how much TV you watch or Twitter you read
- in how much time you spend away from home
- in how long you allow arguments to persists
- in how often you say “yes” (when you need to say “no”)
- in how hard your are on yourself…
Limits feel good. What limit do you need to set today?
