This week I gave myself an assignment: to catch my children doing something right.

I’m not saying I do not praise them enough for tasks that they do well. In fact, I think most of us moms actually have that button that gets pressed every time we see our children accomplish something–be it a trivial task or a major milestone– there is that button that automatically shifts our vocal chords into high-pitched gear and turns our facial muscles into hyper-glee mode. I’m sure our kids often hear us say “HWWAAAWWW! (exaggerated version of wow!)”, “GOOD JOB!!”, or “I’M PROUD OF YOU!!”. I know I, for one, hear myself say those phrases a lot.

But this time I wished to take it further; I wanted to be more deliberate in praising them, and not have to wait for them to accomplish something before doing so. I wanted to take notice of the little things they did, not necessarily in reference to a certain task or milestone, but more of the little things that revealed their character. I wanted to catch them responding/talking properly and thank them for it; I wanted to catch them sharing their toys and appreciate their generosity; I wanted to catch them put in effort into something and tell them how proud I am of them for trying their best even before I got to see the actual results.

The week hasn’t ended yet, but already I feel good about my assignment. I have a feeling I’d be extending my deadline indefinitely…and that I’d be applying it not just with my kids, but with everyone else in this household. (everyone else in this world, for that matter)