On "Good Morning America" today was a story about a father who video taped his 2 year olds fighting and encouraging them. I'm all for letting kids work out their differences between themselves, that is until blood is involved. I don't mediate the little daily arguments between my 11 year old daughter and my almost 4 year old son. I think its good for both of them to work it out.
Someone close to me didn't learn how to "work it out" with his brother, and as such has a very distant relationship with him. His mom mediated everything, and continues to do so. She acts shocked that I don't mediate squabbles between the kids.
I do make my kids apologize to each other when one wrongs or hurts the other. I make them hug each other. With my daughter, she has to explain to her younger brother why what she did was wrong. Boy, that caused a lot of angst when I first started that, but its teaching her to speak to him on HIS level. And - I think its laying some fantastic groundwork for her future in babysitting in the next few years. And you know what? They have a close relationship because of this. She comes home in the afternoon and the first person she looks for is her little brother. I found them this afternoon cuddled together on the couch watching "Pinky Dinky Doo". She was laying down, and he was to the side, but had his head on her chest. It just melted my heart!
In your daily life do you know how to "work it out"? Or, do you let the petty day-to-day annoyances and squabbles get to you?
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