[blparent] Choosing Your Battles with Your Children

[Barbara Hammel]

And, Rhonda, speaking from experience, it is definitely harder to bring a 
non-baby child into your house than to start with a baby.  With a baby the 
slate is empty but those step and adopted children come to you with baggage 
that you have to learn about while trying to cope with the life change of 
that mobile, talking, busy thing that wasn't there yesterday but is now 
there 24/7.
I have autistic twins so if you ever want to just vent, you could write to 
me off list.  Seems we struggle with some of the same issues except that 
Deven is much more high-functioning than mine are.
Barbara

A Congress that will always do its work in the dark must have something to 
hide.  The people have spoken, yet they do not listen.

--------------------------------------------------
From: "Veronica Smith" <madison_tewe at spinn.net>
Sent: Friday, January 22, 2010 10:14 PM
To: "'NFBnet Blind Parents Mailing List'" <blparent at nfbnet.org>
Subject: Re: [blparent] Choosing Your Battles with Your Children

> The only difference between you and me, I became a 40 year old parent to 
> Gab
> the day she was born and you became a 40 year old parent the day Devin 
> moved
> into your home.  I'm not sure which is more challenging.  I thought I knew
> everything about babies until I had my own and then my mind went blank.
> Like I've said time and time again, I wish this list was around when I
> brought Gab home.  Maybe it was, but I just learned to use this silly
> computer about 2 years ago.
> We all make mistakes and we all learn from them.  I am not here to judge
> anyone, I think with the material you have, you are doing a fantastic job
> and I know your husband is as well. I rarely mention my husband, but he is
> also a great parent, he just thinks mom can handle it, cuz this is my job.
> His job is working at Intel. V
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: blparent-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:blparent-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
> Behalf Of Rhonda Scott
> Sent: Friday, January 22, 2010 9:42 AM
> To: NFBnet Blind Parents Mailing List
> Subject: Re: [blparent] Choosing Your Battles with Your Children
>
> Veronica,
>
> You are right, I just need to believe in myself. My husband supports me so
> well. But he says as yours does, that I have patience for so much except
> when it comes to Deven. He has his moments too though, so I get the chance
> to tease him about that.
>
> And it is a wise and reassuring thing to talk with other parents and find
> that he is not really so much different in a lot of his ways. That helps 
> me
> feel stronger in dealing with his attitudes and behaviors.
>
> I didn't get the chance to be a parent till now, and I'm almost 40. But 
> God
> has a reason for everything. Maybe I am the one to help Deven be 
> everything
> he can be, and it's my chance to do that finally.
>
> So thank you so much for sharing your perspective.
>
> Rhonda
>
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Veronica Smith" <madison_tewe at spinn.net>
> To: "'NFBnet Blind Parents Mailing List'" <blparent at nfbnet.org>
> Sent: Thursday, January 21, 2010 9:55 PM
> Subject: Re: [blparent] Choosing Your Battles with Your Children
>
>
> Rhonda, you sound like a really good parent.  Parenting is tough for 
> anyone.
> I always wanted children in my 20's, but for some reason God wanted me to 
> be
> 40 before I had my first and only child.  I used to think I would have 
> been
> more patient in my 20's and when Gab was tiny I had all the patience in 
> the
> world, but now that she is older and more opinionated, patience has flown
> out the window.
> I am the first to  admit that I lose my cool more than I should, but that
> doesn't mean that I love my daughter any less.  She is a good girl, but
> doesn't always want to be with mom and dad.  Sometimes she takes refuge in
> front of Sponge bob or lately the chipmunks.  I always try to encourage 
> her
> to do activities outdoors, but that just doesn't seem to be her thing.
> Actually I have to push her out. (Not literally) but you know what I mean.
> Some days DS lite is her thing, other days reading books.  She is 10 and
> seems to be just like all the other 10 year olds around.
> I know I am doing a good job because when I ask other parents what their
> children are doing, they all seem to be doing the same kind of stuff.
> My husband says I have patience for everything except my own child, I 
> guess
> this is because I expect more from her.  V
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: blparent-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:blparent-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
> Behalf Of Rhonda Scott
> Sent: Thursday, January 21, 2010 2:24 PM
> To: NFBnet Blind Parents Mailing List
> Subject: Re: [blparent] Choosing Your Battles with Your Children
>
> I appreciate what you've said below, Debby. My marriage is indeed not in
> trouble.
>
> Quote unquote lashing out is not something I ever do, I only think of 
> doing
> it. I'm a very patient person for the most part, and it takes a very long
> time and an incredible amount of stress to make me lose my temper.
>
> Rebecca, I think you've misconstrued some of my wording, or gotten a 
> skewed
> impression of how things are in our home. I do not view Deven as a problem
> child. Perhaps to you and some others that is any child who has challenges
> or behavior issues. I view him as a child who can learn to make better
> choices and who has a lot of baggage to sort through from living in an
> unhealthy environment before coming to us. Yes, I get extremely 
> frustrated,
> sometimes angry, yes there are days when I feel down. But I am very aware 
> of
>
> my self, conscious of who I am and my own trigger points. I am also very
> observant of Deven's patterns and have learned quite a lot about his
> triggers. Hmmm, I didn't think I said I never like him or can't learn to
> like him all the time. It takes an insightful person to understand the
> difference between not liking a person, and not liking a person's behavior
> or actions.
>
> I feel I must have chosen poor wording to express my situation here, 
> because
>
> much of what you had to say I found to be hurtful and offensive at times.
> Steve and I never tell Deven to scram, he is always invited to play 
> outside
> in the backyard, or hang out with us and talk in the shop. We have simple
> rules like not touching tools without permission and not fiddling with 
> knobs
>
> or pressing buttons on equipment, but these are general rules I would 
> think.
>
> I could be off base here, but I don't think anyone's child always likes 
> the
> activity chosen, the choices they are given of things to do, who they can
> hang out with, or the reasons why we as parents have a say in those 
> choices.
>
> I disagree about laying off family games. We cannot do activities outside
> the home all the time. I agree whole heartedly that is something we need 
> to
> do more of. I feel too that kids need to realize sometimes they will win a
> game, sometimes they will lose. I don't think avoiding those feelings of
> disappointment will improve a child's ability to accept losing gracefully,
> or learning with much positive reinforcement that if she/he wins the game,
> it is not upsetting to the parents. I think in some cases, we probably 
> need
> to expose our kids to situations they might not like so much, not avoid
> dealing with potential feelings and reactions. Is that not how our kids
> learn that how they feel is OK, and some of what they feel might not be
> real? We're there to guide them.
>
> We have been there and done the playing with the neighborhood kids 
> multiple
> times. I'm afraid you, and maybe some others here, feel I'm making Deven 
> out
>
> to be the bad kid in every situation. I'm not, but when he is out of sight
> and has a pattern of lying, we do need to keep closer tabs on him. The
> neighborhood children have little or no supervision from their parents, 
> and
> though we would love for Deven to make more friends, we have also 
> witnessed
> fights, stealing, destruction of property. It is not always clear who was
> the guilty party. So I would say those kids aren't good kids for Deven,
> especially when we're working on honesty and responsible choices. So sure,
> the computer is a better choice in that scenario. However, isn't learning 
> to
>
> play by himself now and then healthy as well? Whether you feel it is 
> mostly
> me, or some of it is Deven too, trust is an earned thing for children and
> adults. He needs to do his part in earning trust. I do not mistreat him, I
> do treat him as the human being he is. I never make him eat things he
> doesn't like, I'm considerate of his feelings when dad is tougher on him
> than I feel is fair, I rarely raise my voice to him, I don't speak badly 
> of
> his mother even when he tries to get me to say she's a bad person.
>
> We are talking of a situation here where Deven's mother is not in the
> picture at all, not once a week does she call, not once a month. The only
> time Deven has contact with her is when he calls her, which we encourage 
> by
> the way, even though each time he actually gets to speak to her, and that 
> is
>
> if she answers her cell phone, she promises to call him back and says 
> she's
> busy, but he never hears from her. It is very upsetting for him a trigger 
> of
>
> course, and it is tempting to not encourage him to call her. But I think 
> of
> myself as a sensitive person who wants to do the right things. So I can 
> say
> without hesitation that seeking coping techniques from mom is completely 
> out
>
> of the question. Mom, who told Deven when she had soul custody that his 
> dad
> never tried to call him, when in fact she did not answer our calls. I 
> would
> say she probably did not treat Deven as the human being he is. Yet, you 
> feel
>
> I need to do quite a lot of things to accommodate Deven. I happen to feel
> even with his share of problems, or challenges, whichever doesn't make me
> out to be the bad one, he does have the ability to work with us and do his
> part and not put all the responsibility on us.
>
> One area I do see your point about is the spanking after a bad day. In 
> fact,
>
> I think that's why I don't spank him. I never even mention spanking to him
> anymore, have only thought about doing it.
>
> The business we operate is a fairly large investment and it's our living. 
> We
>
> don't use it for an excuse to neglect being good parents. But we do have 
> to
> keep long hours and fit in activities in small slots, with the exception 
> of
> Sunday, when Steve and I work hard to spend the day together as a family.
> Balancing work and being parents is not impossible and we are still 
> learning
>
> how to do that. We were not as busy before, and we will get busier in the
> near future. It is our responsibility to make time for our son, but I 
> think
> it's his responsibility to work with our schedule at times and do what we
> ask him to do. He is given the choice to be with us, and offered things to
> do. Last weekend it was Monster Trucks with dad or a friend's house. He 
> can
> choose to be with us, but often chooses TV or video games. Of course, 
> maybe
> saying all of this is me being stubborn.
>
> I don't have to reassess my marriage for a moment, that is not the area I
> came to this list to seek suggestions and advice about. I came here to ask
> for suggestions from other blind parents, advice on how to treat various
> situations, and yes, to find others who might have similar feelings that I
> have, offer some coping strategies. I would say that means I do want to 
> work
>
> hard on myself, not blame my step son for everything happening here.
>
> Rhonda
>
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Deborah Kent Stein" <dkent5817 at att.net>
> To: "NFBnet Blind Parents Mailing List" <blparent at nfbnet.org>
> Sent: Thursday, January 21, 2010 1:15 PM
> Subject: Re: [blparent] Choosing Your Battles with Your Children
>
>
>
>
>
> It sounds to me like Rhonda is working hard to navigate a very stressful
> situation.  I don't get the impression from her posts that her marriage is
> in trouble, and it really is not our business on this list to try to 
> analyze
> anyone's personal situation.  Our focus is issues that pertain to being a
> blind parent.
>
> Debbie
>
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Pickrell, Rebecca M (TASC Inc)" <REBECCA.PICKRELL at tasc.com>
> To: "NFBnet Blind Parents Mailing List" <blparent at nfbnet.org>
> Sent: Thursday, January 21, 2010 11:47 AM
> Subject: Re: [blparent] Choosing Your Battles with Your Children
>
>
>> Hi Rhonda.
>> I think V's suggestion of having Deven help in the garage and the YMCA
>> is a great one.
>> I also think that you need to talk with Steve. His going from task to
>> task and "inability to sit still" apparently works for him. You chose to
>> marry him, so that trait isn't a deal braker for you. Why not ask him
>> and maybe his mom for coping techniques rather than viewing Deven as
>> being a "problem child".
>> As for computer time, v. going outside, I think that if it's a choice
>> between Deven playing with the bad boys (and girls too), then the
>> computer time is better. The last thing you want is for a good kid with
>> poor decision-making abilities to hang around bad kids. You also
>> probablywant to make sure these kids are real trouble v. just being kids
>> who may think differently then you do. In any event, I don't think
>> saying "Scram, I have work to do" is the approach you want to take.
>> As for family day, I'd lay off the games. Some kids just don't like
>> playing games with their parents because either way they feel bad. If
>> they lose the game, then they are "loosers" and they've disappointed mom
>> or dad. If they win, then Mom or Dad lost, and they must feel bad about
>> that right? So, I'd try to find other things for you all to do.
>> Finally, I'd have a talk with Steve. He needs to understand that he's
>> got full custody of Deven now, so he can't escape into the garage and do
>> "work". He and Devon can work in the garage together, but it isn't okay
>> for Steve to decide he's had enough and go out into the garage. You need
>> to put your foot down on this one.
>> Finally, you need to figure out why you'd want to spank a kid after a
>> bad day. Why would you want to inflict pain and humiliation ona person
>> no matter the circumstances? Would you want someone to treat your
>> daughter or son this way? If you simply don't know how to deal, I'd look
>> into a parenting class. If lashing out is your normal patern, I'd go to
>> a doctor, get a checkup and pay attention to your own trigger points,
>> i.e. hunger, thirst, being too hot or too cold, being too overtired,
>> stuff like that, so you can get a grip and treat Deven like the human
>> being he is.
>> Finally, if you can't or simply don't want to learn to at least like
>> Deven, you need to figure out if the marriage with his dad is what you
>> want. It's okay to not want it. Better to be honest then be ugly toward
>> Deven who doesn't have a choice in living with you and in taking
>> whatever you or Steve dish out.
>> Good luck with whatever you guys decide to do. I think finding an
>> activity outside of the home and guidingDeven toward things he values
>> will make a world of difference.
>> Finally, have you asked him what he likes so much about online games?
>> You may be surprised by the answers and be able to find a real-world
>> activity with the same elements. Reenactting comes right to my mind.
>>
>
>
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