Kids ears are always listening (although it may seem like they are not, especially when it's time to clean up). It's so easy to think that because a child is engaged another activity they are not paying attention to your conversation, or what you are saying has no effect on them, but that is not the case as proven in the example above. Therefore it is important to use discretion when having conversations with your friends when your children (younger or older) are around.
This holds true as your child gets older as well. On the phone telling someone about how slow a reader your child is? Complaining over tea that your child has to have speech therapy? Well, if your child is within earshot then you should hold off on the negativity. There's nothing wrong with venting to a friend or catching them up on what's going on in the family, but it's a good idea to keep these conversations for when your child is not around.
If your child is in trouble or having difficulty with something, they may already feel bad enough about themselves without having a parent unintentionally make them feel worse. So try a little tenderness. After all we all have our own areas of weakness.
