I once was a Mom that yelled…

…tricked ya!

I still sometimes yell and it really sucks.

I don’t want to be a mom that yells, but the other day I LOST IT.

It was a day we had all 7 kids.

It was a school night.

After dinner, I rushed to pick a kid up from practice 20 minutes away,

Steve left to go support another kid in a debate competition,

and the rest were left at the house.

I came in to the kids watching a movie I wasn’t ok with the younger kids watching, dinner hadn’t been cleaned up and there were backpacks, junk, shoes and toys EVERYWHERE.

It felt like the last straw…

But I could also feel immediately that my reaction was too big and unwarranted.

As soon as the kids took care of the things I needed help with…it was time to transition into bedtime routines and a little family devotional.

Do you know how uncomfortable it is to try and show up all nice to a family devotional after you were the one that just disrupted the peace in the house?!

It feels a bit awkward.

But, I started by saying this:

“I need to apologize for coming in the way that I did tonight and yelling. I know that I could have gotten the exact same result had I just said ‘screens off, time to clean!’ but that’s not what I chose. I am feeling a bit stressed out and overwhelmed lately and that’s something I need to work on and I need you guys to work on doing your part to take care of your own messes. Blah blah blah.”

The result from that interaction was so much better than the result from me choosing violence.

Just kidding, I wasn’t violent – but very mad.

I’m a firm believer in being the example of saying sorry to my kids..and sometimes it’s not easy…

…because kids are the worst.

But, it’s always worth it.

No matter what happens during the day, nighttime needs to be a time of healing, reflecting, snuggling and creating moments.

“They” say that you and your spouse should never go to bed angry…I feel this even more strongly with kids. Let every day end with a positive moment and those core memories will be lasting.

Read a story.

Snuggle.

Journal gratitude and feelings.

Use our buddies to talk about values and emotions.

And don’t forget a good tickle and a smoochie smooch goodnight.

Because at the end of the day, it is all about creating emotionally intelligent children who are able to give and receive love.

And, if you’re looking for more activities to do with your kid at the end of the day, use this robot word search!