Feelings

A while back, Rylee was having trouble sleeping.  She was scared of monsters, the dark, coyotes, every noise she heard, etc. One night we tried talking to her about happy things before she went to bed. She fell right to sleep and slept all night.  We tried it again the next night and had the same results.

About that same time, James and I were discussing how we aren't much of "feelings sharers". I never really have been. We decided to change that, and to teach our children that it's good to share our feelings.  We are hoping that they will always feel comfortable talking to us about their feelings.

Our bedtime routine for the past few months has been to share our feelings.  After just a couple of nights, the kids actually started telling us they wanted to share feelings, without being asked.  We were amazed!  They always like to start off with "happy".

"What made you happy today, Mommy?" Wyatt's sweetheart always asks me to share my feelings first. I usually say the same thing to him every night. "Buddy, it made me so happy today when you pooped in the potty!"  I figure it can't hurt telling him that every night while we are still getting him comfortable with the potty. And really, it does make me happy!!  Fingers crossed, we haven't had to clean a poop mess in awhile now.  He always follows up with, "What else made you happy?" He likes to keep things positive.

Rylee on the otherhand, always wants to share her feelings first.  She, too, always starts with happy. She shares multiple items from her day that made her happy.  We also encourage her to share other feelings and more times than not, she will do so without prompt.  She uses frustrated and sad mostly. She also will tell me, "Mom, I wasn't mad at YOU when you wouldn't let me _____, but I was mad at myself."  I'm glad she clears the air :)

One of my favorite things she shared came the night after she'd been at a friend's house.  When I picked her up, she gave her friend one of her toys from the van.  That night she told me, "Mom, it made me feel really good when I gave Feylin one of my toys today."  Awwwe.....Melt.My.Heart.  We talked about how nice it is to give to others and how it makes us feel.  I hope she continues to remember that feeling.

We also talk to her about being thankful and we share things we are thankful for each night. She is a pretty blessed child and we want to make sure she stays humble and remembers to be thankful.

I am beyond glad that we started this bedtime routine.  Not only did it help Rylee with her sleep issues, but hopefully it will be impactful as they decide whether or not to be open with us as they get older.  And I also hope it's a nice memory they will keep.  Plus, it's just a fun recap of our day.

So...what made YOU happy today??