​Are you unintentionally sabotaging your child's development?

Yesterday my 2 year old son walked through the front door holding his shoes in his hand.  I asked for his shoe, and instead of placing them on top of the shoe organizer, or in the organizer, I placed his shoes side by side on the floor in front of the shoe organizer.  He began to whine and said no, as I turned to walk away. 

I almost insisted that it was okay to leave the shoes on the floor as he picked them up and placed his shoes next to a pair of my ballet flats, but I stopped myself.  Insisting that he leave the shoes on floor could have undone months of training and modeling.

As parents we put so much time into training our children, but one lax moment can undue our efforts.  Children thrive on consistency and routine and when they don't have it, they are confused.

This  was something basic, a pair of shoes on the organizer, but it reminded me that I must always remain conscious of the verbal and nonverbal messages that I communicate to my children.

We must all remain conscious of the weight of our actions on our children who are always watching us.