I agree don't be afraid to say no, so long as you can respect their no's too (within reason of course ie. vs. their safety). We believe in everything straight down the middle. If there are rules for her then they apply for us. I have never EVER said "because I told you so." or "You will do what I say young lady" or any other crap like that. I think if you can respect your children young, they will respect you and with mutual respect you can't really go wrong. We talk about EVERYTHING, not just when I feel like it but ALL the time. If she gets chastised about something we always have a talk about it and I explain every why there possibly is. And I personally think because of this she trusts my judgement and doesn't rebel against things I ask her not to do. Whereas if you just give kids the whole "because I said" etc they start to think that is not enough of a reason and doubt your decisions or try to rebel against them.

*hugs*
Cailin