Children Respond to Discipline

It was the most amazing thing that I've seen all week...My ten year old stepson raced down the stairs to quickly use the bathroom and return to his world of video games upstairs.  I heard the toilet flush and the door come flying open, as he flew past me.

"Hey, come back down here and wash your hands!", I called after him, though he was already halfway up the stairs.  He came down, washed his hands, and unexpectedly threw his arms around my waist, hugging me.  "Awww...that was nice to get a hug," I smiled.

"It's because you're the best Stepmommy in the whole world!"

Now what just happened?  I had to collect my thoughts for a moment, because it was hard for me to imagine that I was being practically thanked by a child for keeping them in line.  I even called my husband at work because I was so touched and surprised.  He offered this piece of wisdom - "Children respond to discipline."

Children need boundaries, this I have always known, but the older they get the more evident this seems.  I think it is almost a comfort to them to know exactly what perimeter they are free to operate within.

As a Stepmother, and one who is fairly new to the position, I often feel like I need to be more indulgent toward my stepchildren than my biological ones.  I blame Disney and fairytales in general, for making Stepmothers seem like wicked people, and making me feel like I need to try hard to be the "cool" stepmom that everyone wishes they had.  I am slowly coming to the realization that children from broken homes, as all of mine are, crave boundaries even more than children from nuclear homes.

Case in point:  Apparently, your children will love you, even if you don't let them get away with a single thing.  Now, get out there with your x-ray vision and bionic ears, and keep those kids in line, WonderMom!