Tormenting your kid... entertaining yourself!

I believe that we have to mess with our kids a bit.  I don't mean cruelty; I mean some harmless teasing and taunting.  You see unless they live under a rock for the rest of their lives, they will encounter teasing in the real world and having a child that cries when teased gets him/her a free pass to spend half of high school stuffed in a locker with a wedgie.  If a child develops a somewhat thick skin at home and learns how to accept mild teasing and how to tease back, they are much better prepared to go out and meet other children in this world.

With that said, here's my story of my latest teasing.  It was fun and entertaining for both me and my other kids while it lasted.  Try it at your own house... you just might have some fun!

One day, my 12-year-old son came to me very distressed.  It seemed he couldn't get the song "It's a Sunshine Day" by the Brady Bunch out of his head.  Now, even when the Brady Bunch was popular, this would have been coolness suicide in Jr. High... today it's even worse!  So what does a kind-hearted and concerned parent do?  Why, sneak into his room every night with the iPod and mini speakers and play that very song quietly on a loop next to his ear for a couple hours.  Of course, the torment wouldn't be complete without also telling his siblings about his dilema.  They responded by very kind-heartedly humming the song softly or breaking out singing it when he entered the room and of course by requesting it everytime we got in the car.  By the time a week and a half had passed he truly thought he was going nuts and was going to have this song running through his head forever.  When I noticed it really started to upset him on a deeper level, we all stopped the torment and ended our enjoyment.  But during that time we all enjoyed quite a good laugh.  I believe he is now plotting a terrible revenge on each of us, but it's all in good fun and we will of course then have to find revenge on him for whatever he comes up with.  Download this song for your iPod directly from iTunes to torment your own kids here...  or buy the whole CD for weeks of fun!!!

Who says pranks are just for April Fools Day?  Have fun with your kids and tease them a bit.  They will fit in with society better and one day they just might thank you for it! :)