Top ten things your child LOVES about YOU! Well, I mean, I can’t really say that for certain, but I do have a reasonably good imagination, and I would imagine at least these ten things would make every child’s list:
I love when you put a space between my action and your reaction. Take a deep breath. Take a step back. Show me what self-control in the face of adversity looks like.
I love when you put down your phone! Look me in the eye. Pay attention. Unplug and connect with me!
I love when you help to keep me safe! I love being among the safest children by knowing that I have the power to say “NO!” I love that you have given me the language and the permission to talk about sexual abuse.
I love when you spend time with me! I love when you show me that I matter and that I am important by reading with me, painting a picture, building a puzzle, taking a walk!
I love when you offer me praise! I love to hear WOW! WAY TO GO! SUPER IDEA!
I love when you understand that just because you are comfortable with someone doesn’t mean I am! I love when you don’t force me to be physically affectionate with anyone!
I love when you trust your instincts! This teaches me how to trust mine.
I love when you tell me you love me! And I love when I can tell that you mean it!
I love when you listen to me! It may seem like small stuff now, but to me it’s big stuff!
I love when you slow down! I love when we are not hurried! I love that you know milestones will be reached in my own time, at my own pace and not according to a chart on a wall somewhere! I love when you realize that my childhood is a journey and not a race!
Maybe our children would not articulate the ways they love us in quite this way, but trust me, our littles appreciate when they matter in the big ways, in the small ways and in ways they don’t even recognize yet. And surely our littles love when we keep learning, keep loving, keep moving forward!
Do you know your score?
Answer ten questions and
understand your future health.
Laura Fogarty
Editor, Ask Lala
Laura Fogarty writes “Ask Lala” for the Stop Abuse Campaign. She is a mother, an advocate and the author of two children’s abuse prevention books: I’M THE BOSS OF ME! and WE ARE JUST ALIKE!