I like this one:
2. She says that he started it. He maintains that she started it. Who’s right?
The answer in our family 99.9% of the time is HIM.
Our son and daughter are 13 months apart, but miles apart in personality. She's very quiet, grounded, compassionate, kind, (but with the attitude of an almost-10-year-old girl...yikes) and he's a loud, social, risk-taker, mischevious, and class-clown. He's the bugging, annoying, poking, pony-tail pulling little brother.
Hubby and I are pretty easy-going personalities, so we parent in the same way, and with a lot of humour and friendship, versus too much totalitarian authority. But we've been known to lose our cool too! Usually heard in our house:
- Leave your sister alone!
- I'm warning you! One....two....If I get to three......
- Leave your sister alone!
- Because I'm your mother! (I always swore I'd never say that!!)
- Leave your sister alone!
- I'll turn this car around and go home (never happens...bad follow through)
- Leave your sister alone!
Consequences in our houses are swift and cruel...loss of coveted computer time (yup, kids are up-and-coming computer geeks too) and bike time.
I like Denisea's story, maybe I"ll try that next time they're screaming at each other in the car....haha.