Wednesday, November 08, 2006

Parenting advice

Situation: kids acting crazy (yelling, fighting, and stomping) and waking up their sister

Solution: it is in your best interest to act swiftly and get REALLY MAD. Put both boys in the corner (or failing the availability of quality corners, just stand them near the wall for 10 minutes or so) Then (here's the good part) tell them that they must clear the whole house of all their dirty socks and jeans and cast off sweatshirts and do the laundry THEMSELVES (because you are TOO TIRED from their AWFUL BEHAVIOR. )

Why this works: 1. they are scared not to MOVE MOVE MOVE because Mom is clearly inches away from total lunacy, as evidenced by the fact that she actually used the timer for the corner standing (ok, I don't even have a tidy corner, wallstanding.) 2. they feel badly because they KNOW they are the cause of aforementioned lunacy.

I shouldn't give parenting advice because if I were such a Good Mother I wouldn't even have the laundry problem. Nor would my children scream at one another. Who taught them the word "idiot" anyway? I hate that person.

I think it was me.

Bonus feature of the old fashioned corner excercise- the little sister gets to practice her nurturing and strengthen her bond with her brothers by continually telling them how sorry she is and rubbing their backs as they stand in the corner. Sowwy. Sowwy Ahhh. Sowwy Dadu. Sowwy.

No comments: