31 Days of Repetitive Parening: Day 10 "Who's the fun parent?!"

Hubby and I have a friendly little competition in our household to see which one of us can hold the title of "The Fun Parent!"

Sporting our favorite Santa hats on Christmas Eve 2011!

Having been youth leaders in one way, shape or form throughout our 20 years of marriage, we kinda pride ourselves on being fun and spontaneous.  It was important to us that our kids see that crazy side of our personalities instead of being bombarded with a constant stream of instruction, discipline or criticism.  Both of us cannot always be the fun one though, because as Hubby like to remind me, "Someone has to be the parent."

It is a fine line to walk in order to be considered a fun parent.  Sometimes it means handling discipline with a bit of humor in order to diffuse the situation.  This may or may not backfire resulting in the immediate removal of "The Fun Parent" title.  Sometimes it means throwing caution to the wind to treat the kids to ice cream before dinner. (Gasp!)  This is a sure fire way to be excitedly declared "The Fun Parent" with a cherry on top!

When Hubby or I decide to do something fun with the kids, we like to remind them that we are in the midst of creating family memories together.  A simple, "Who's the fun parent, now?!" will usually suffice.  Other times it may come donned with Santa hats on our annual jaunt to pick out our Christmas tree.  Or look quite absurd all dressed up as Mrs. Weasley for the midnight show of the final Harry Potter film.

Me & Bud heading to see Harry Potter!

We have had very many fun times with our kids and our silly little question helps remind them (and us!) of those times.  Since parenting can be a roller coaster ride, it is important to develop healthy relationships with our kids that enable us to coast through the fun times and cling to each other before plummeting toward those tumultuous times.

Taking time to do silly things with the family opens up the paths for better communication and trust.  It's a little easier to approach one another regarding a more serious matter after a spontaneous dance party or tickle fest with our toddler.  Truly, laughter is the best medicine!  Sometimes it is just what we need to make a better decision or get over a petty issue we may be harboring.  "Fun-loving parents" do not have to be mutually exclusive concepts, so we take time to enjoy the children God has given us!

As I was writing this post, my son walked by inquiring about today's blogging topic.  When I told him it was about being the fun parent, he quickly reminded me that Dad is the current title holder.  He took them to the midnight premiere of Hunger Games...on a school night!  There may be no way of reclaiming my title after that.

Looks like the competition continues and I'll keep repeating, "Who's the fun parent?!" til I score a few more points!


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