The Bloody Good Life: Sometimes you have to be the giver

I love me a good mom catch phrase. I am certain that at some point it was fun and games until someone got their eye put out, that someone's face did stick like that, and that some fool actually did jump off a cliff because their friend did it first. When my kids tell me I'm the meanest mom ever, I say "Good. I love being the best at stuff". Also, I think I'm going to teach them that the Constitution of the United States has a "because I said so" clause.

One saying I use with my kids a lot is "sometimes you have to be the giver." I made that one up myself and it is good ammo when someone in the family is whining about doing something that doesn't make them the center of the world. I always want our children to realize that in relationships and in life, sometimes, you have to be the one who helps meet another's needs. I think this is especially true when families deal with conditions like bleeding disorders that can easily ooze over every part of life sucking attention continually toward hemophilia.

I want my kids to know that whether a person has been dealt a lousy hand or a great one, the obligation to serve others is the same. My son is not exempt from giving to others just because others will spend time giving to him. I want him and his siblings to know that there are lots of people in the world, with lots of different problems. Some problems you can see in bruises, some you cannot. Our problems are not more significant than those dealt with by the billions of other people that live on this planet.

That is why every year, we help raise funds for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. I have two nieces with this disease and I want a cure. We also participate in the annual CF walk with our family and friends to support the foundation and our girls... and because the walk begins and ends at an amusement park, there's never any complaining about being the giver.