But I need it!

I think just about every parent out there has probably heard the same declaration from their kidlet: "But I need it!" It does not matter what the object of said kidlet's desire might be. It is enough to know that the kidlet believes that life will cease to exist if they do not get whatever "it" is.

Personally, I use those needy moments to annoy my kidlets with a discussion of "want" versus "need." They need food. They want food this exact second. They want me to make them a different type of food instead of whatever I served. They need clothing. They want a forty dollar skirt they will outgrow in two months. They need water. They want chocolate milk. They need shelter. They want their own bedrooms, and barring that, they want their sibling to stay on the other side of the room. They need to figure out something to do. They want the latest toy, electronic gadget, or other item instead of using the thousands of items they currently possess. They need love, support, and instruction from their parents so they grow up to be a responsible adult who actually knows right from wrong. They want their parents to shut up, stop telling them what to do, and give them everything they demand.

I have never understood parents who jump through hoops to give their kidlets anything and everything under the sun. Just because a kidlet wants something does not mean they have to have it. More parents need to learn the word "no," and use it as many times as necessary in a given day. I am not talking about withholding the necessities of life. I am talking about the junk food at the checkout line when your kidlet has been misbehaving throughout your shopping trip, the newer electronic gadget when the old one still works just fine (or even worse, is not used at all), the television or computer in your five-year-old's bedroom, buying your kidlet a car without them having to work towards earning one, or anything else where you are teaching your kidlets you will cave to their demands.

I know parents who let their young kidlet have a television in their own room so the adults do not have to give up their own shows. What about teaching your kidlet to share and take turns? What about putting limits on the amount of time everyone watches TV? I have yet to see a study done that shows television actually benefits anyone. What about turning off the television altogether? And a television is just one example of the numerous items out there where parents often let their offspring's wants control the situation.

The same holds true for us parents though. We need to say no to ourselves sometimes, too. If you have a smoothly running vehicle, you do not need a new car just to have the most recent model. If you have a functioning television set, you do not need a bigger and better one. (You also don't need to put your foot through the TV to make it stop functioning. Just sayin'.) The same holds true for cell phones, eReaders, laptops, Oompa Loompas, and so on and so forth.

Remember that our kidlets are going to imitate what we do. If we live as though our "wants" are "needs," they will, too. The only difference in this case is that if our kidlets don't get what they want, they will expect us to provide it for them.