I told myself I’d stay off Facebook today. I didn’t want to see the back and forth banter. Bashing one another. However, I stupidly went on because of my OCD tendencies and I can’t stand to see the little red notification  number. I saw a lot of, “What am I going to tell my kids?”

Well. Stop and think. We live in this society now were every kid gets a trophy and we don’t keep score in youth soccer (wonder where these entitlement issues in our society stem from). So yeah, what are you going to tell your kids? They have been coddled in this little bubble were there are no “losers.” That’s our fault as a society. They need to know that there are winners and there are losers. It’s the game of life. Better get used to it now. I had the upbringing where I always knew there were winners and losers, and what was important was trying your best and having good sportsmanship. Being respectful. That’s what we need to teach our kids.

My husband thinks it’s strange that I don’t “let” my kids win. Sure I do if we’re racing…because face it, they have little legs and if they’re trying their very best my longer legs still outrun them. However, when we sit down to play a game of Connect 4, I’m ruthless. I am. I beat them over and over and over again, until they figured it out. They developed a strategy and they WON! Fair and square. They earned that win. That’s how I teach my kids.

I’m a big believer in everything you learn comes from your home first. So many people are in an uproar and in fear of what is going to happen. Honestly, I was scared either way. Whether you win or lose, do it with grace. If we all just teach our children to be kind to each other, to walk out the door every day with a smile, to treat everyone with respect…we’ll be okay. Teach them to always try their best. Stop tearing each other down to boost yourself up. In politics, that’s what they do. Is it how it should be done, no. Let’s teach them that it’s wrong. Stop arguing with one another. Agree to disagree. BE KIND!