Have you ever noticed that peoples dogs, often look and sometimes act like their owners. In fact, I have with some regularity, been able to guess the profile of the owner just by seeing the dog. Next time at the park, take the opportunity to make similar observations and I am confident you will be amazed.
The same is true, (and more so) with our children. I see a lot of kids and I see a lot of parents. And over the past 16 years, I can tell you with little exception that you don’t have to look any further than the parent to figure out the kid. Sure genetically speaking, the similarities are upfront. But behaviorally, those traits too are directly linked to mom and or dad. Yet way too often, we as parents are the first to be completely dumbfounded by our children’s negative behavior or misgivings. Does, ”Where did he learn to do that” or “I can’t believe she is acting that way”, sound familiar. Yes, there are instances where our kids go completely bonkers and say or do something that they must have learned during an alien abduction episode. But for most instances, that behavior has been learned from no other than their number one model – us.
