My 4 year old son gave the most amazing piece of advice this evening

[Godhumor]

So he has been pretty naughty all afternoon and into the evening. Naughty to the point that his mother and I were both exhausted and cranky. My son noticed this after dinner and asked me what was wrong.

I told him that I was tired because he had been a handful all day.

He said, "Well, Daddy, let's stand up and make all of our bad decisions go into the trash cans in our feet, and then we can stomp on them. After that, all that is left is our good decisions."

And I stood up, visualized all my bad choices for the day sliding from my head to the trash cans in my feet. And then I stomped the hell out of them. And now I feel great.

Kids are an odd species.

[Yavin4]

1. If you were Dick Cheney

You'd be stomping for a while. A good long while.

[uppityperson]

2. It makes you shake your head and wonder how they come up with things

Sounds like quite the little person.

[Arugula Latte]

3. Give that kid his own show on Oprah's network!

[3catwoman3]

4. What a delightful story.

Working in pediatrics, I may well find a use for your son's great advice.

[cer7711]

5. My landlord often tells the story . . .

. . . about the time she and her husband got into a heated argument while driving.

Her son--four at the time--clapped his hands over his ears and shouted, "NO LOUD TALKING!"

To this day, they regale others with their child's wise and cautionary words.

No loud talking, indeed! They credit the admonishment with saving their marriage.

[rusty quoin]

6. Oh, that's great. Kids that age make you think.

I was digging down to the foundation of my house in the 90s. I hate digging. My two kids were playing in the yard. I hit rebar, jumped out of the hole, kicked a trash can which was two cans in one, swore up a storm, and my four year old son walked up to me, took my hand and said, " dad, why don't we sit down and take a break." We sat down, and I settled down. It worked.

I will never forget the moment, and you will never forget that moment with your son.

[Major Nikon]

7. Here's what I always say about having a bad day with your children

Much sooner than you think your kids will be grown and they will move out of the house. Even if they live locally and visit you often, your heart will still ache for the days when you all lived together as a family and you will miss even what you thought were bad days at the time.

[Arugula Latte]

9. When you have little kids they say "the days are long but the years are short."

Boy, ain't that the truth.

[lostnfound]

8. I love age 4. It's my favorite age.