MANNERS

Some parents today don't think it is necessary to teach their children manners. Maybe because their parents didn't teach them. If you want people to like your kids as much as you do, then start teaching them manners NOW. There is nothing worse than a kid walking into your house and opening up your refrigerator to see what you have to eat, and then just taking it. Back in the "old" days,having manners was a good thing. We said please and thank you, no thank you, and excuse me if someone was talking and you wanted to ask a question. It is easier to overlook an eight year old being rude than an eighteen year old.  I was taught manners from such an early age that it is automatic for me. If I am in a grocery aisle and have to pass someone who is selecting an item, I say excuse me if I pass in front of them. I also would never dream of asking for something if I was in someone else's house unless they offered it first. I see many parents today letting their kids tell them what to do instead of the other way around. There are very simple rules to teach your kids, and if they are corrected just a few times it will become part of who they are. Yes please, no thank you and excuse me are the most important. Your children need to know that when an adult asks them a question, they should answer them politely. They should never assume that they can act like they are in their own home when they are somewhere else. Let them know that they can't walk around someone else's house unless they are invited to do so. We were never allowed to have friends go upstairs. I am one of ten children and therefore we didn't have much privacy, so that was a firm rule. If I saw one of my friends putting their foot on the first step, I let them know it was off limits.  (Some of our friends thought we had dead bodies upstairs because they weren't allowed to go up.) Just remember to teach your children to be respectful when they are in someone else's house. When my children were young, some of my friends would come over with their toddlers. As soon as they would walk in the house, they would set them loose. They would let them go wherever they wanted to, and would never even check on them. By the time they would leave my house, it would take me all afternoon to put everything back where it belonged. The parent needs to have manners and pass it on to their kids. Along with manners is another very important thing to remember. If you curse, so will your kids. I have heard so many young children saying four letter words before they can even count. How sad is that. Is that what you want to teach your children? I hear parents cursing in front of their kids like it is an acceptable part of the English language. Then if the kid curses, they either laugh at them or punish them. Please teach your children that there is never a need to curse. It makes them seem less intelligent and it is very disrespectful to others around them. Just remember, if you teach your children manners at a young age, it will stick with them for life. You can't teach an old dog new tricks!