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So, here was my solution to ungrateful behavior: Every time I did something wonderful for my kids, I would thank myself the way I deserve to be thanked, accompanied by dramatic arm gestures:

"Thank you sweet Mommy! How do you do it? Every day, in so many ways, you do such thoughtful and generous thing! Why, it's nothing less than inspiring!" I could go on like this for a good ten minutes. (I'm sure you could, too!)

And the only way to stop me was to say, "Than you, sweet Mommy!"

Then I would say, "You're welcome!"

Sometimes I did a "Thank you, sweet Daddy!" speech.

My grown children sometimes still say, "Thank you, sweet Mommy!" so I guess it worked. Hahaha! It definitely made me feel better in the moment.

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I love that. Thank you for sharing.

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Love this idea.

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Love it! What a character! And great role-modeling!

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Love this: Ungrateful behavior does not always reflect true ingratitude. Rather, ungrateful behavior in young children is often related to a lack of skills or simply forgetting to express gratitude.

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Yes! We need to model gratitude to our children and support their intentions.

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