Parenting.com has posts an interview that covers her thoughts on motherhood, breastfeeding, permanent birth control, and her kids competing in the Olympics. But, it was her response to this question that I identified with most.
How do you talk to your kids about sports? What do you tell them is important?What a great response.
I like to take everyday experiences to teach them things. Once Eli and I were playing Chutes and Ladders and he wanted to quit because he got the chute all the way to the bottom of the game. He said, "There's no use playing because I can't win." And I told him, "If you quit now, I'm never going to play with you ever." And he knew I was serious. Then he beat me. It was the humungous moment ever.
I play my 6-year old daughter in Wii and golf drives her crazy. She has trouble with her short game and putting, because she can't just haul off and whack it. She has to take practice swings and then hit it exactly right, and it frustrates the heck out of her to the point that she sometimes begins to whine and squirm around.
That's when I shut the game off and walk away. I used to try to calm her down, but it just got worse & worse. Now, she knows, if she's going to play she not going to be able to whine and cry when she doesn't do well. The fix is not to complain, but to practice harder and get better.She beat me the other day for the first time, because she learned to not give up.
