I love watching other parents parent their children…

I really do. So when I saw this couple sit down in front of Jami and I with what looked like a five year old boy and a three year old boy on the plane ride back from vacation I was… well… excited.

I know, I know. I was a little nervous too. Because as the family walked down the aisle of the plane to find their seats it was clear who ran the show. But I was hoping that we didn’t get the “screamer” type of children. And from the looks of it, I didn’t think they were.

From the moment they sat down, the show was on… the dad couldn’t get situated and put his things away before the demanding boss of a three year old demanded he get his iPad set up. “Billy,” (real name not used), just wait sweetie. I need to put my bag above…” “Ok Billy, I need you to…” Father now leaves his bag in the aisle blocking the path for other passengers. “Is that the movie you want sweetie?” “Sir, I need you to put your bag away.” Now coming from the flight attendant. The poor father’s head looked like it was on a swivel.

The rest of the flight was fairly uneventful with the kids going back and forth between the aisle to get to the mother who was pretty much hands off.

Then came the landing in Chicago. The line up for landing was kind of bumpy. Seatbelts were supposed to be fastened. Three year old Billy was sitting on one side of the plane with dad and the five year old on the other side with mom. As the plane was getting ready to land, bumps and all, little Billy decided he didn’t want to sit with dad anymore. “I want to sit with mom,” Billy demanded. “No sweetie, you have to stay in your seat.”

Billy wasn’t having it. His demands getting louder the second and third time. “If you get out of your seat, you’ll get in trouble with the flight attendant,” dad said. Well, that only made little Billy angry. Now screaming at his dad, I could hear the sound of the metal clips beginning to unlatch. After unbuckling himself, Billy stands up in his seat and begins to walk towards his mom. His dad reaches out to grab him to pull him back, but somehow Billy escapes and dad gives up.

As little Billy crosses the aisle to mom, he begins to dance and sing, “Nah nah nah. I’m sitting with moooommmm.” And the dad did nothing… worse, he just looked defeated. And in my head, I couldn’t help but wonder what everyday living looked like for that family.

And I was able to get a glimpse 10 minutes later as we were waiting to get off the plane.

You see, Billy wasn’t done. As we were all getting our things together, that family was trying to gather up their items as well. Mom needed to pack up her carryon bag but needed Billy to move. The problem… he wasn’t moving. So, mom gave dad a look. And that look prompted dad to pick little Billy up. The problem… Billy didn’t want to be picked up. So Billy said no and…

Billy

Slapped

His

Dad

In

His

Face

In my head I thought, “Daaaaaannnnnnngggggggg. Dad just got pimped slapped by a three year old.” The slap was so hard that everyone three seats away from this father turned and looked, waiting to see what was going to happen next.

Nothing. Nothing happened. He simply put him down and picked up his bag, and continued waiting for his wife to get her things together.

I don’t know anything about this family other than what I witnessed on this flight. If I was forced to guess, I would say that their children run the house.

Then I started to think about my own kids, and me as a dad. I would have never allowed my kid to essentially Bi$#% slap me without a consequence (or a bodyslam in return). But I definitely don’t have it all together. There are times where I say no only to give in later. There are times where I give consequences and then don’t hold to them. Those times are few and far between, but they happen. Watching this reminded me how important it is to correct and hold my children accountable for their behavior each and every time. Consistent consequences are super important for children, and in the end, I need to do my best to help them become responsible adults… one day at a time, even when I get tired.

Direct your children onto the right path, and when they are older, they will not leave it. Proverbs 22:6