I’ve come to the conclusion that hubby and I are softies. As much as I like to think I am a mean mom, meaning standing firm and consistent in what I say, I am not. We are too negotiable. Too fair. Too soft. The penny in the jar is going well. The girls were kind of excited about it at first. They thought it was fun to scrub the floors. Hey, when you’ve never done such a thing before, it is exciting. (maybe for a kid) Today we were at Costco and two of my girls proceeded to argue and be unkind. They each got a penny. Arguing continued, penny given, again and again. By the time we got home they both had 5 pennies. The rule is that the pennies need to be worked off (15 minutes of scrubbing kitchen floor) before the next meal, and especially before they go to bed at night. Dinner was almost finished and the girls were hungry, but those pennies remained in the jar. I gave them directions to get started and one child decided she’d rather be difficult and her mouth decided to keep getting her in trouble. Before all was said and done, 8 pennies ended up in the jar. It took her 2 hours to work it off, and dinner finally arrived at 8:30 pm. They tried to negotiate, and we almost gave in. I think that maybe this experience was a good lesson. There might be more thinking before speaking next time. And boy is my floor clean!
Susan
how awesome! i think ithat a grand idea, and i think it’s marvy that you didn’t give in.
and come to think of it, i think my floors could use some scrubbin’, too…
Good for you in not giving in! It is so hard sometimes to stand firm… especially with a mommy heart.
But in the long run, I doubt you’ll regret it. Hang in there, you’re doing a great job Susan!