Comments on: 6 Things my Kids Are Not Allowed to Say to Adults

By: Regina

Regina — Wed, 14 Jan 2015 07:11:44 +0000

I completely agree with your post, I have the same rules in my home. People always think I’m being too hard on my children but I want them to grow up to be respectful grateful adults and they have to be trained now in order for that too happen.

By: MaryEllen Bream

MaryEllen Bream — Tue, 13 Jan 2015 21:05:36 +0000

In reply to Amber Freeman.

You’re right, Amber. My thing growing up was baked beans (but now that you mention it I never cared for sweet potatoes either). The point here is more that they’re not getting a special meal just for them. If they’re hungry they can eat what’s being served – but I don’t think they should be forced to eat a huge helping of something they gag on. But if they refuse to try? Into the fridge it goes. They can try again at the next meal.

By: Amber Freeman

Amber Freeman — Tue, 13 Jan 2015 16:47:27 +0000

I think the only thing I disagree with is the “I don’t like this” statement. I do firmly believe in making a child actually TRY a food, but my stepfather and I hit a wall when it came to yams when I was a child. I did not (and still do not) like yams or sweet potatoes (to the point that they would make me gag). He did as you suggested and saved them for the next meal and it turned into three days of tears and serious upset.
As I said, I firmly believe in making a child actually try a food, but I also firmly believe that there are certain foods that some people do not like and forcing them to eat the foods will not help them like them.

By: MaryEllen Bream

MaryEllen Bream — Tue, 13 Jan 2015 05:11:57 +0000

In reply to Amanda @ MarocMama.

You are right, Amanda. I wasn’t thinking at all of instances of inappropriateness. Children should absolutely be taught how to handle those situations; that they will never be in trouble with mom and dad; that they can scream, run, say no, whatever they need to do. As for the food, I am not talking about forcing a child to eat large portions of a food they dislike (we choose the things we like, don’t we?) My husband’s family called it a “no thank-you helping” – a couple bites. But they do need to eat that. And the point is more that they need to be respectful and grateful rather than whining that they don’t like their food. These little lessons will be something that will help them through their entire lives.

By: MaryEllen Bream

MaryEllen Bream — Tue, 13 Jan 2015 05:07:08 +0000

In reply to LH. You are absolutely correct. Thank you for sharing your insight.

By: MaryEllen Bream

MaryEllen Bream — Tue, 13 Jan 2015 05:06:29 +0000

In reply to Rachel @ A Mother Far from Home. The end of pregnancy is SO tough, Rachel! Hang in there!

By: MaryEllen Bream

MaryEllen Bream — Tue, 13 Jan 2015 05:05:37 +0000

In reply to Angela. Absolutely, Angela! We teach our children those same things. That aspect was not on my mind for the purposes of this post, but I think I will edit it to clarify.

By: Angela

Angela — Tue, 13 Jan 2015 04:35:47 +0000

I understand the idea behind “no” being on the list, I don’t allow my child to tell me “no” – but I would be very careful careful about teaching them that they can’t say no to any adult for any reason. There is danger in that and if someone wants to touch my child inappropriately or is trying to convince her to go somewhere with them I want her to very adamantly and defiantly say, “NO”

By: Rachel @ A Mother Far from Home

Rachel @ A Mother Far from Home — Tue, 13 Jan 2015 03:56:32 +0000

Oh, I needed to read this. The past few months (end of pregnancy) have seen standards slip and my kids have started – they never used to – to say “I don’t want to” or “no.” And we just moved back to the South where I grew up and “ma’am” and “sir” were non-negotiable and they don’t say those either…. I am so ready to get on top of this!

thanks for this post!

By: LH

LH — Tue, 13 Jan 2015 02:20:58 +0000

I completely agree with you that children should be respectful, however not all adults have good intentions toward children. You may address this with your kids and didn’t mention it in the post, but over the years of raising children and working in law enforcement I have learned that it’s okay for kids to have healthy boundaries. Many children have strong natural God-given instincts to protect themselves. They should never be forced to hug or kiss someone or allow someone to hug or kiss them. How can you teach them that no really means no if we tell them it’s okay to allow someone to forcefully cross a personal boundary? Many children also view teenagers as adults because they are so much bigger and seem so much older to a small child. Children need to know it’s okay to tell someone they don’t like what they are doing, saying, or showing them. It can be awkward for those that we love and believe that mean no harm but that should not be a reason to teach a child a behavior that could endanger them and make them and easy target for a predator. I’m sure this was not what your post intended to cover but I thought it might give parents something to think about that might not have considered this before.