Coffee with a Friend

I was up early and cooked breakfast for Nurse Child as she is working at a coffee house in Cody and needed to be there by eight.

Then it was off to coffee with my sister/friend Robin. We sure can fit a lot into an hour! She has drawn some fairly definitive lines with her kids this summer as they are beginning to grow up and push the boundaries as children will often do. She drew a line in the sand with the oldest one to aide in his maturation process! He seems to be responding well.

This is true in every aspect of our lives. Right down to the training of the dog! Hank the Cowdog is part heeler. Seems as though he thinks I need "heeling" every time I step out the door. He also thinks Addy needs some too. She is not as aggressive as I am! I chased him off with a soup ladle this morning. It was all I could grab as he was chomping on my feet! I am the only one in our house that he really takes advantage of. My horse would reflect the same "friendship."

Buck Brannaman said sometimes you need to be the parent... not always the animal's friend.

Could this also be true in our parenting? This is quite a revelation to some, sorry to say, but, not to Construction Man. He's had this concept figured out for quite sometime!! He is a great dad and not so bad at the dog training either.

"There is no such thing as a perfect parent, so just be a real one." ~~ Anonymous