parenting is tough!

i've read a few articles and blog posts on parenting in the last couple weeks. these articles focused on how american children are spoiled. i don't completely agree that all american children are spoiled. i do realize that there are always exceptions.

after reading this article from the new yorker, i've been questioning js and my parenting style. i read the article and wondered how american children have come to be so "spoiled" and take so many things for granted? it has to start, and now end, somewhere. i don't want to raise a spoiled child. i want pbs to help out without being asked or told to do so. i want him to be respectful, loving and caring towards all people. 

i read two other articles on similar topics with tips on how to curb this "spoiled" attitude. here are the links to those articles: are your kids spoiled? and 10 signs your child might be spoiled and what to do about it

js and i have been trying to have pbs help out at home whenever we can. he helps with laundry, picking up and putting away his toys and books, helping with the trash. those are things that he can do right now at two and a half. pbs loves to help and comes running when we ask for his help. i think we started this when he started walking. if he's in the nursery at church he picks up the toys he was playing with without being asked or told to. don't get me wrong, pbs is not the perfect child! in fact, he can be a downright terror sometimes, especially if he's overtired, overstimulated, or just plain over it.

when we were expecting pbs, we asked other family members and friends what they do for disciplining their children and how they got them to behave so well. they told us about this book called "parenting with love and logic". we've read some of it and have tried some of the techniques. we like what we've used and pbs seems to understand that we love him but we want him to figure out what needs to be done to make a challenging situation better. parenting is tough! i know we have a parenting style and have had friends and complete strangers ask and comment about what we are doing with pbs, but i just hope that we're doing what's right for pbs.