Mistakes

Yesterday evening I came home & found my calendar had a huge hole & then tear right smack in the middle of the page.

"Neena, come here!!" I called her back to the office without giving away my frustration.

When she came in, she saw what I was holding & immediately her face turned to concern.

"I'm sorry, Mommy. We can fix it. I'm sorry. Ok? I'm sorry."

Her voice was so quiet & careful & she immediately comes & holds my face to give me kisses & hugs. Oh my goodness, that kid is precious! It has been a long road of immediate punishment/discipline to earn the respect I have with her now...and now she HATES getting in trouble. And I just hate having to get on to her. It just hurts her so badly! She tries sooo hard to obey & if she makes a mistake--like tearing up my calendar--she really feels badly for it!

"It's okay, Honey; I will fix it. You know that you're not allowed to play or draw in the office; you need to obey. Thank you for saying you're sorry."

"Okay, I forgive you." (She doesn't quite understand who needs to do or receive the forgiving yet; it's so cute.)

"I forgive you, too."