Quick Tip: The Kid Interview
Here’s a simple thing I did with my 5 year old the other day for less than $3. I was having mom guilt over not spending ‘quality time’ with her (someone please tell me what ‘quality time’ means these days) so I picked her up from school an hour before getting her brother. I would usually run errands with her, which often results in her begging me to buy stuff. Then I say “no”, and she is bummed. Backfire.
So this time I tried a different twist. We went to get a cookie and I interviewed her. At 1st she was like “ugh, that word (interview) is scary - I don’t want to do that.” Maybe it was my paper, pen and ‘officialness’ about it. I relaxed and fired off questions, and was blown away by some of the answers. Here’s my short list:
If you could be any animal for the day, what would you be?
What’s your favorite veggie?
If you could have 1 person surprise you and come over to our house, who would it be?
What do you like about sharing a room with your little brother?
Why are you excited to go to kindergarten?
Where would you like to visit on a plane that you haven’t been before?
Do you think we’ll let you have a dog one day?
What makes your heart happy?
What makes your heart sad?
If we saw someone on the street asking for food or money, what would you do?
What would you say to a friend who is sick?
- Who makes you laugh the most?
Yes, this is basically like those old American Express ads where they ask famous people questions and they give unfiltered responses. My point is …. sometimes I’m so busy thinking about myself, friends, work, the ‘to do’ list that I forget to just BE STILL and give greatly to my kids. I’m good at making breakfast, getting them out the door and shuttling them around. But it’s hard to just stop and be present. It doesn’t have to be about giving them stuff or a great adventure. This 15 minute interview uncovered random stuff I would’ve never guessed was running through her brain. So go try it out, see where your kid would go on plane, and please add to the list.
