--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I don't know how these couples do it…" description: "\"“I don't know how these couples do it, spend hours each night tucking their kids in, reading them books about misguided kittens or seals who wear unifo..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/857/david-sedaris-333_books_i-don-t-know-how-these-couples-do-it-spe_984698.jpg" --- # I don't know how these couples do it, spend hours each… ![“I don't know how these couples do it, spend hours each night tucking their kids in, reading them books about misguided kittens or seals who wear uniforms, and then reread them if the child so orders. In my house, our parents put us to bed with two simple words: "Shut up." That was always the last…” quote by David Sedaris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/857/david-sedaris-333_books_i-don-t-know-how-these-couples-do-it-spe_984698.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/857/david-sedaris-333_books_i-don-t-know-how-these-couples-do-it-spe_984698.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/857/david-sedaris-333_books_i-don-t-know-how-these-couples-do-it-spe_984698.jpg) > ““I don't know how these couples do it, spend hours each night tucking their kids in, reading them books about misguided kittens or seals who wear uniforms, and then reread them if the child so orders. In my house, our parents put us to bed with two simple words: "Shut up." That was always the last thing we heard before our lights were turned off. Our artwork did not hang on the refrigerator or anywhere near it, because our parents recognized it for what it was: crap. They did not live in a child's house, we lived in theirs.”” [David Sedaris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-sedaris/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The author contrasts his strict, no‑nonsense bedtime routine with modern parenting that indulges children's imagination, highlighting differing values. **In simple terms:** Strict vs. indulgent parenting. Key Takeaway Consider the impact of bedtime routines. Themes parenting discipline imagination Mood nostalgic critical Type observational humorous When to use this quote - bedtime rituals - parent‑child communication - creative storytelling Key Concepts authoritarian vs. permissive family dynamics Questions to Reflect On - What balance of discipline and imagination works for you? - How do you foster creativity without chaos? A Different Perspective Rigid rules may stifle creativity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Simple words](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/simple-words/) ## Related quotes > [“In my house, our parents put us to bed with two simple words: “Shut up.” That was always the last thing we heard before…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-sedaris/in-my-house-our-parents-put-us-to-bed-with-two-simple-words-shut-up/) [David Sedaris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-sedaris/) > [“If you don't agree with me, I have two words for you: shut the fuck up.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-simmons/if-you-don-t-agree-with-me-i-have-two-words-for-you-shut-the-fuck-up/) [Bill Simmons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-simmons/) > [My dad was quiet, angry, shut down. So my thing is: I express everything that's there. I want to get it all out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glen-hansard/my-dad-was-quiet-angry-shut-down-so-my-thing-is-i-express-everything/) [Glen Hansard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glen-hansard/) > [Words, words, words! They shut one off from the universe. Three quarters of the time one's never in contact with things, only with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldous-huxley/words-words-words-they-shut-one-off-from-the-universe-three-quarters/) [Aldous Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldous-huxley/) > [“We are students of words: we are shut up in schools, and colleges, and recitation -rooms, for ten or fifteen years, and come out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/we-are-students-of-words-we-are-shut-up-in-schools-and-colleges-and/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [I've been in this business for a long time at my age, I've just turned 30, and I feel like my wife's career is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-phillippe/i-ve-been-in-this-business-for-a-long-time-at-my-age-i-ve-just-turned/) [Ryan Phillippe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-phillippe/) > [My parents liked to go dancing, and they encouraged all of us to bring our friends home. 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Our parents didnt think it was very groovy, and I tend to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elvis-costello/there-was-not-a-lot-of-rock-n-roll-in-the-house-our-parents-didnt/) [Elvis Costello](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elvis-costello/) > [When you're the youngest and the only boy, you get spoilt but you get told you're spoilt so you don't get to enjoy it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-marsan/when-you-re-the-youngest-and-the-only-boy-you-get-spoilt-but-you-get/) [Eddie Marsan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-marsan/) > [“No matter what the cause, the result is the same: iGen teens are less likely to experience the freedom of being out of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-m-twenge/no-matter-what-the-cause-the-result-is-the-same-igen-teens-are-less/) [Jean M. Twenge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-m-twenge/) > [There was not a lot of rock n' roll in the house. Our parents didn't think it was very groovy, and I tend to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elvis-costello/there-was-not-a-lot-of-rock-n-roll-in-the-house-our-parents-didn-t/) [Elvis Costello](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elvis-costello/) > [I grew up in a Glaswegian house because my parents are fairly Glaswegian-sounding.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-walker/i-grew-up-in-a-glaswegian-house-because-my-parents-are-fairly/) [Tom Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-walker/) > [Is there a doctor in the house? My parents want me to marry you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendy-liebman/is-there-a-doctor-in-the-house-my-parents-want-me-to-marry-you/) [Wendy Liebman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendy-liebman/) ## More by David Sedaris > [“Plenty of animals had pets, but few were more devoted than the mouse, who owned a baby corn snake—“A rescue snake, she’d be quick…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-sedaris/plenty-of-animals-had-pets-but-few-were-more-devoted-than-the-mouse/) [David Sedaris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-sedaris/) > [“never fall asleep in a Dumpster, never underestimate a bee, never drive a convertible behind a flatbed truck, never get old, never get drunk…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-sedaris/never-fall-asleep-in-a-dumpster-never-underestimate-a-bee-never-drive/) [David Sedaris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-sedaris/) > [“It was a father, one hand resting teapot-style on his hip, and the other - what would be the spout - formed into a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-sedaris/it-was-a-father-one-hand-resting-teapot-style-on-his-hip-and-the/) [David Sedaris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-sedaris/) > [“A Japanese woman we’d met in Paris came to the apartment yesterday and spent several hours explaining our appliances. 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"I'm guessing you must be Catholic, am I right?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-sedaris/you-have-how-many-children-in-your-family-the-teacher-would-ask-i-m/) [David Sedaris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-sedaris/) > [“Like most seasoned phonies, I roundly suspect that everyone is as disingenuous as I am.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-sedaris/like-most-seasoned-phonies-i-roundly-suspect-that-everyone-is-as/) [David Sedaris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-sedaris/) > [As a child I assumed that when I reached adulthood, I would have grown-up thoughts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-sedaris/as-a-child-i-assumed-that-when-i-reached-adulthood-i-would-have-grown/) [David Sedaris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-sedaris/) > [“You just take and take don´t you? 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Hysteria, psychosis, torture, depression:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-sedaris/i-spent-months-searching-for-some-secret-code-before-i-realized-that/) [David Sedaris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-sedaris/) > [I hated leaving a hole in the smoking world, and so I recruited someone to take my place. People have given me a lot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-sedaris/i-hated-leaving-a-hole-in-the-smoking-world-and-so-i-recruited/) [David Sedaris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-sedaris/) > [Write relentlessly, until you find your voice. Then, use it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-sedaris/write-relentlessly-until-you-find-your-voice-then-use-it/) [David Sedaris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-sedaris/) [Explore all 667 David Sedaris quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-sedaris/) ## More Books quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [If what I write is literature, I guess you'd better emphasize the 'litter.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-lunch/if-what-i-write-is-literature-i-guess-you-d-better-emphasize-the/) [Lydia Lunch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-lunch/) > [My sentences got sharper and my stories more efficient, and I gradually learned to imagine the reader more clearly and to empathize with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/my-sentences-got-sharper-and-my-stories-more-efficient-and-i/) [Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [“Within the pages of books, I've journeyed to Mandalay, the Milky Way and Santa Fe, without once having to leave my armchair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-ansbro/within-the-pages-of-books-i-ve-journeyed-to-mandalay-the-milky-way/) [Kevin Ansbro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-ansbro/) > [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [“Tacitus did not write a most dangerous book. His readers made it so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-k-krebs/tacitus-did-not-write-a-most-dangerous-book-his-readers-made-it-so/) Christopher K. Krebs > [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/) [Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/) > [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [I think books in which people are really happy and things are going well are probably the most challenging novels there are to write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-books-in-which-people-are-really-happy-and-things-are-going/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [“Be careful about reading health books. Some fine day you'll die of a misprint.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-herz/be-careful-about-reading-health-books-some-fine-day-you-ll-die-of-a/) Markus Herz > [But editors are still the world's readers. And thus the eyes of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/but-editors-are-still-the-world-s-readers-and-thus-the-eyes-of-the/) [Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/) [Browse all 59,485 Books quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I don't know how these couples do it, spend hours each night tucking their kids in, reading them books about misguided kittens or seals who wear uniforms, and then reread them if the child so orders. In my house, our parents put us to bed with two simple words: \"Shut up.\" That was always the last thing we heard before our lights were turned off. 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