When Do You Listen To Your Kids?

Back in the day when I had a "normal" job, I drove my kids to school or day care, and usually picked them up in the afternoon or evening. My normal job involved taking and receiving calls on my cell phone most every minute that I was in the car and alot of times when I was home. Someone always needed something....right now. I was not smart enough to turn it off.

Now that I live in little ole New Smyrna Beach and work at home, I sometimes cannot find my cell phone. I take my son to his bus and my daughter to school and I pick them both up in the afternoon. Probably 10 minutes each way twice a day. Since they go to different schools at different times that 20 minutes a day is spent alone in the car with each of them, the things you can learn....if you listen....

My daughter is wide open and chatters her head off, I know everything, she loves Art, PE and Chorus. She is scared of the FCAT and I won't tell you what we call her teacher. She loves her dogs and her horse and hates her brother. She thinks her Grandma is the Queen and the sun rises and sets on her Grandpa. Her Uncle Rick is strict but "he loves us Mommy" and her Uncle Robby is the cool one. (we won't call him in an emergency-her words not mine).

My son is a tougher egg to crack, he is usually quiet and reading a book or listening to his Ipod in the car. I ask questions....how was your day, crap like that. It usually gets him talking. I know he loves his school, I know who his friends are what they talk about, I know what he thinks about politics, A-Rod and steroids, his baseball coach and what new "apps" he wants on his I-Touch.

I don't talk, I listen. The one thing I always tell them is "I Love You"

I laugh at the response.....

my daughter..."MOM, I know, I love you too, don't embarrass me"

my son looks at me like I have a third eye and says, "how do you think I don't know that Mom, I love you too."

So I use the 20 minutes I spend in the car with my kids to "listen". I would love to know what other Moms and Dads are doing to listen to their kids?