"6 lies I told my kids this weekend."

Come on… every parenting does this. Right?

Thanks to PSY’s Gangnam Style I have found myself caught in a ridiculous situation.

Bear with me here.

Many, many months ago my then 4-year-old asked me what a “sexy lady”  after hearing the song at a pre-school disco.

I hesitated, and um-ed and er-ed and finally came up with the explanation that sexy is what you say to a girl who you think is pretty and you really love.

I know, I know I was under the pump. He wanted an answer immediately and I sure wasn’t firing on all cylinders that day.

I am dealing with the consequences daily.

“I sexy you Mummy.” he says as I grimace a smile back at him.

“You’re sexy Grandma,” he cries as I quickly cough and try to explain my way through his obviously confused communication skills.

Every time one of my kids tells me they “sexy me” I groan a little louder and wonder how on earth I can dig myself out of this very deep hole I seem to find myself in.

It’s all so easy to bounce out those little white lies as an easy answer or as a solution to a tricky situation isn’t it?

Just this last weekend I realised that little fibs are flowing out of my mouth faster than PSY’s bottom wiggles.

1. “The park is closed today for spring cleaning – it being the last day of winter.”

I was cozy, I am just getting over the flu and the thought of pushing a swing was akin to listening to Gangham Style on repeat.

The park always closes for the last day of winter doesn’t it?

2. “The Tooth Fairy doesn’t work on Saturday nights.”

Well she needs one night off! Luckily, Sunday night she clocked on and delivered the goods.

3. “This is special grown-up chocolate. It’s like wine – kids can’t have it or it makes them sick.”

As I said, I’ve had the flu. I need that chocolate.

4. “The batteries aren’t replaceable on that toy. You’ll have to just have it as a pretend walking-woofing puppy now.”

You’ve spun the same lie haven’t you? Go on admit it.

5. “The supermarket isn’t selling those toys they are just there to look at before Christmas.”

Sometimes saying ‘no’ over and over again is tiresome and it’s easy (lazy?) parenting to rely on a helpful lie. I know I don’t have long until they cotton on, but hopefully by then the toy aisle will have lost its appeal.

6. “Oh no, I didn’t mean to leave that life-sized cardboard box creation out in the rain. What a shame we have to throw it out now.”

Okay now I am feeling guilty. But it WAS massive.

It’s a lazy method of parenting I know – but who can be perfect 100% of the time.

While on one hand I tell my children to always tell the truth, it’s often easier just to sneak in a tiny mis-truth to ease your way through the day.

I plan to ease up on the white lies as the kids get older, but I think the fact is that they will let me get away with them less and less as their understanding of the world grows.

Lazy parenting? Bad parenting? Or a necessity with small kids? Do you tell “little white lies” to get through your day?

Want more? Try:

Every parents’ daycare nightmare came true for this mum.

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