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You lied, you dog you. And you'll be sorry!

This is a line from a song from one of my favorite movies: Pillow Talk with Doris Day and Rock Hudson. If you haven't seen it. Do. You won't regret it.

I have a problem with lying. It stems way, way, waaaaaaaaay back from my childhood and is something I do not tolerate. I don't handle it well and I don't respect those who do it. I am not talking about little white lies: No, your hair looks great or Yes, those shoes are awesome. I mean the lies that are meant to shield some uncomfortable truth and in doing so cause harm. I include lies of omission in this.

We have some lying happening in the House of KB. Totally age-appropriate and something we are working through. We talk about the value of the truth. The importance of being trustworthy and the lifelong impact that has. We have talked about the boy who cried wolf. It is a hard lesson and takes time. We are working on it and making progress. But this is a hard lesson to impart for this momma while staying calm and loving.

So, the other day? I failed. I had to teach the lesson and I was neither calm nor particularly loving. I snapped at B and it wasn't representative of the situation at hand. I did end up getting my sh*t together and talked about it more calmly. And in true kids fashion, the lesson ended on a laugh.

V: We don't do that in this house. We do not lie in the yellow house.

B: Does Dada know that?

V: He does. Yes.

B: Oh.

T: Yeah, but he learned it the hard way.

V: (Don't laugh. Don't laugh. Do. Not. Laugh.)

Welp, looks like my work here is done. Kass, out.

 

How did you handle lies or half-truths in your house with your kiddos? Any advice would be greatly appreciated. No need to reinvent the wheel.

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