Don't start what you don't want to finish.

Parenting advice is something that I try not to give unless asked for. *Note: by coming to my blog, you asked for it. Aren't you lucky?

But if someone does ask, or has me jot something down on a piece of paper for some lame baby shower game, this is the nugget of wisdom they get.

Don't start what you don't want to finish.

Kid's are creatures of habit. And while some experts will tell you that you need to do something X number of times for it to become a habit, kids often think otherwise. And it's never good things that they cling to after one time, it's stuff you wish you could go back and never introduce.

So to save you the pain, let me share a few of these scenarios that I can't, but wish, I could undo.

Ranch Dressing- In an attempt to get my daughter to eat veggies, I gave her Ranch dressing. She ate her veggies, and anything else she could dip. I've seen my daughter eat a brownie with Ranch. God forbid we run out, the poor child would starve. I've tried to wean her and she is back down to just veggies, fries and chicken. But that was a battle, one I wish I'd never had to wage.

Quarters for the dumb ride outside a store-Not all re-dos are mommy's fault. I have never given my kids money for the rides or games that we find at stores and restaurants. But Thank You Grandma! My announcement of "Mommy doesn't have quarters for that ride." was instantly met with her digging in her purse. All fine and dandy for them to have a little fun, but now every.single.time. we go into that store they campaign for a ride. They beg, they protest and I lose a bit more of my already dwindling mind. I have now come up with a solution though. Since my kids love me taking their picture, they climb in the ride and I snap a photo with my phone and show it to them. They are happy and we move on.

Riding in the big part of the shopping cart-Again, not my fault. I blame Daddy.

Can they "un-watch" a show?- Plenty of these. My current least favorite is Fish Hooks.

Driving Woes-Also known as "Mommy, what's an Idiot?". I do much better now that we don't live in a major city, but I get grumpy at people when I drive. To this day if you ask my daughter what an idiot is, she will tell you it's someone who can't drive. I'm glad she went with my explanation, but I'd just as soon never yelled it in front of her.

Honey Nut Cheerios-This one covers lots of food choices. But in simplest terms, if the original is good......don't offer up the next option. I rue the day I passed over the big yellow box. Now my kids have to be tricked into eating them. The trick? Well, it also helps with the cereal aisle melt down should I have to suffer the trauma of taking kids groccery shopping. They are allowed to pick any kind of Cheerios they want (not totally true, we don't do the yogurt, chocolate or banana ones) and I get a box of regular ones. At home, I pour both boxes into a Tupper cereal box. They get half the good stuff and half the healthy. So I guess it's only half a solution, but it's working.

I'm sure there are dozens more examples. As moms we have a lot of talents, too bad seeing into the future isn't one of them. Do your best to think down the road and you may save yourself a struggle or two. Or four.