Backfired Lesson...I should have known!

Over the past few months, my 'has to to know the reason for everything' four-year-old began questioning my reasons for making him wear a helmet while riding his bike.

"Because it will help keep you safe," I usually reply to him

"But mama, other people don't want to wear them," he would respond after seeing cyclists and motorcycle riders several times, who of course, as our luck would have it, were in fact not wearing helmets.

"I see that," I'd respond.

Hum....

At first, I tried the whole tactic of , "well, when you are a grown up, you can make grown up decisions about your safety, but for now, mama gets to make them for you." This worked for a while, until we started running into other children, some even his own age, who too, weren't wearing helmets.

"Mama, those kids aren't wearing helmets and they aren't grown ups," he'd say to me. And I would say, well, that might be okay with their mother and father, but your mother and father want you to be safe, and we have decided that you need to wear a helmet."

When this still wasn't satisfying his question, I decided to change my approach again and explained to him that wearing a helmet while riding a bike is the smart thing to do, no matter what age you are.

He liked the idea of being smart.

Last week, however, while we were walking along a bike path heading to the beach several adult cyclists came toward us. Wouldn't you know it, they weren't wearing helmets...

"Mama, look," Nate yelled, pointing right at the first two cyclists (two feet away from us). "Those grown ups aren't very smart, are they?!" He exclaimed.

My sister, Kara who was walking with us, gently touched my shoulder and, while trying hard not to laugh, said, "I think it's time you revisit your helmet lesson !"

Right.