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Life isn't fair

I so desperately wish I could make life fair for my children.

I want their little hearts to never be broken!
I want their innocence intact..... like, forever!

I have the tendency to try and even everything out for my kiddos.
Just for example:  When I am shopping and I find something for my daughter... I will stress and search up and down to try and find something for my son before I go home.  vice versa as well.

I want them to know they are equally loved by me and never is one favorited over the other!

Lately, I've been thinking a lot about how we as parents, have a huge responsibility to make sure we are teaching our children, guiding them, giving them the tools to succeed in life. 

One of the hard realities of life is: life's not fair.

So where is the balance? 

There is this big debate about whether children should be required to share.
I understand both sides of the argument. 
I've come to a place where I am middle of the road on that one.

What about conflict?  How we react to conflict sets the tone for how our children will deal with similar conflict.

A while ago in a visit with a friend she told me about a bad teacher her son had in middle school.  They butted heads and just clashed on every level.  She told me about her inner struggle of wanting to remove her son from the class and let him have a different teacher.   She realized though, that he had to learn to deal with conflict at some point as this is a perfect picture of how life as an adult can be.  So instead, she gave him tips to deal, was a shoulder for him to cry on, ear to vent to, and they made it through the year.

I have never forgotten this and have appreciated her outlook so much.

It is my instinct to fight for my kids, to take on their battles and try and make life as easy as possible for them.  I love them more than I thought a person could love!  They are part of me.... mama bear is very protective!

But, with the realization that we are preparing them for LIFE, I realize I HAVE to let them experience disappointments, conflict, sorrow and not getting their way. 

I want to be sure that we are raising confident, resilient, kind, patient and quality human beings. 

You are better equipped to handle conflict the more you've dealt with it.
You are better able to show kindness, empathy and compassion to those in need and pain when you have experienced a portion of it yourself.
So on and so forth...

My kiddos are still quite young, and I know that road is long ahead, but this has been on my mind for a while and I just wanted to "spit it out" here on this place.  My blog.  I haven't written for a while and it feels nice to once again, put my thoughts and feelings "on paper".

Here's to making choices that benefit our children's futures, no matter how hard it is to do.

I hope you have enjoyed reading!  Feel free to share and pass it along!  Thanks so much for "stopping by"!

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