The "S" word...

Why is it that when we want our kids to listen to us we have to repeat ourselves ten times but when we'd rather they not hear us they can repeat every word we say?  I ask myself several times a day if my three year old needs hearing aides because I have to say things so many times (and even then it sometimes doesn't do any good). Yet when I am speaking to adults, thinking he is out of ear shot or just simply not paying attention, he suddenly calls me on everything I say.

I wish I had a dollar for every time I have been put in time out by my three year old for saying the "S" word. I never realized how much I say the word "stupid". I have gotten after our son several times for saying it and in the past few weeks he has gotten after me. I will be in the front seat of the car with my husband and when I mention another drivers stupidity I quickly hear my son from the back seat say, "Mommy, you said stupid.Your in time out". Or maybe I am looking for something around the house and say something under my breath like 'where is that stupid remote?' I suddenly hear, "Mommy, you said a naughty word. Your in time out." So after having been called out on my consistent use of the word "stupid" so many times over the past few weeks, I am really starting to realize that I need to clean up my vocabulary. I am spending more an more time in time out and I am not being a very good example to my kids. I am learning an important lesson from my three year old about being nice and not saying "bad" words. My time outs are giving me a moment to think of what message I am giving my kids about negativity. When I am negative I am teaching them to be negative. So as I sit here in time out for a "moment of reflection", I am making a promise that I will promote positive thinking and try my very hardest to remove the word "stupid" from my vocabulary.