rewarding?

So, if your child seemingly enjoys the punishment, do you continue giving it? I know the answer seems blantantly obvious, but let me explain...

Laci thinks that she can talk her way out of anything. When she tries to "persuade" us that her actions are okay or that she shouldn't get in trouble, she doesn't know when to stop talking back. I try to keep punishment within the realm of the offense; for example, if she jumps on the couch or my bed, she doesn't get to sit on either the rest of the day. For talking back, she gets soap in her mouth, which she absolutely detests - but I really resent having to pin my child down to enforce it. So, I've been reviewing in my mind all the leverage I have against her - cartoons, playing with friends, even preschool and gymnastics (which I have taken away before). Then, a new idea came to me: give her extra jobs. Already she has her daily chores - make her bed, brush teeth, bath, etc. On a weekly basis, she vacuums her room and cleans the bathroom (with Mom's help, of course). Most of the time, she completes her daily chores cheerfully and without incident. She typically completes them within 15-20 minutes. Most of the time, she's really self-motivated. But, I also don't give her a huge "laundry list" of chores, either.

After deciding to give her extra jobs for talking back, I warned her at the beginning of the week that when she talked back she would get extra jobs, and that she would do them on Friday after completing her "big" (weekly) jobs. From Monday until today, she tallied a total of 10 extra jobs; (I was lenient). I made a list of things ranging from wiping down windowsills, baseboards, and kitchen cabinets to vacuuming and dusting various rooms in the house. She needed my help with the vacuuming, which I expected she would. But, I figured it would still be a punishment because it's in addition to and out of the ordinary from what I normally expect. And, aside from the vacuuming, she did everything else herself. When she completed one job, I told her what the next one was and told her how I expected it to be done, then checked it when she told me she was finished before moving onto the next job.

That girl! She cheerfully did every job and completed all 10 in less than an hour. All she had to say at the end of it was that "all this work is making me starving!" I'm not going to complain - her doing it saves me from having to do it later. But, now I'm wondering if it's even a punishment!

I'm appealling to moms everywhere: what do you think? And, how would you proceed?

missing fall

Fall is my favorite time of year! I relish in the varying shades of leaves as they change from orange, yellow, and red. My stomach flutters in delight with the expansion of my wardrobe as I pull out sweaters, scarves, and boots. I savor the smell of freshly baked apple-pie. And, who doesn't like candied apples? My usual dislike for soup has even turned into a love affair - (honestly, why bother with hot soup when it's still 100-degrees in October?) But, here when temperatures have dropped to the mid-60s, soup is just the thing to satisfy my hunger and warm my chilled bones. And, who can deny themselves the contagious glee of the approaching holiday season?

But alas, snow has come to Utah! Jason even drove home a plow truck last night in anticipation of the impending snow. I reluctantly accept predictions for an early winter this year; but really, does it have to come BEFORE Halloween?

O, where art thou, my beloved fall?

jelly bean

I had my second OB visit today, and things look good. He found a heartbeat; yeah! At first he was having a hard time finding it using the doppler, so he pulled out the sonogram machine to get a more accurate reading. (I have to admit that made me a little nervous!)

Apparently, the baby is sitting higher than he expected - which might explain why I feel like I'm rounding out so much sooner than my other two pregnancies. We found the heartbeat right away. The baby looks beautiful - more like a baby than a little jelly bean like in my earlier sonogram pictures. He didn't print any off this time, but said that next time we can find out if it's a boy or a girl! (I'm still maintaining my position to keep it a surprise since this will be our tie breaker, but Jason isn't too sold on the idea.) It's hard to imagine that I'm already at 12 weeks. For some reason, I thought I was at 10, so it's nice to hear that I'm further along! ...anything to speed up the process, right?

potty training: days 3 and 4

Well, yesterday went really well; Jacob even woke up with a dry bed this morning! (and I thought that was going to take a lot longer to correct, since he's such a sound sleeper). But, let's talk about 3 steps forward 2 steps back! Today has felt like we're back on day 1 with all the accidents.

Lora Jensen recommends potty training at 22 months, and Jacob will be 2 in December. I've wondered if Jacob is too young because it has been much harder for him to learn than it was for Laci. How I wish I had trained Laci at this age! She would have been well under way before Jacob was born. (It's a lot more difficult trying to potty train when you're nursing an infant.) I think she was around 28-30 months old, and she picked it up in an hour. So, age may contribute. More importantly, however, I think that personality is a huge factor in each child's development. Laci loves a new adventure, loves learning about anything/everything, and she jumps in with both feet - whatever it is. Jacob couldn't be more opposite from Laci; he is very cautious and hates change.

On the other hand, I know he understands what is expected of him or he wouldn't have been doing so well yesterday. So, I need to stay on top of the reminders to use the potty. And, that may be why today has been more difficult for him. I was babysitting 2 little girls and 1 infant today for about 4 1/2 hours, which means I had 5 kids under the age of 5! That makes for a long day. (Thankfully, Laci had preschool for two of those hours, and when she came home she played outside most of the afternoon.)

I'm just keeping my eye on the ultimate prize:

that Jacob will be completely potty trained before our next baby is born...

Yup, I'm pregnant! (and we found a heartbeat this time). These last few months have been an emotional rollercoaster for me. I surprised myself at how well I handled the miscarriage, but let me tell you, I would not want to relive the hormonal ups and downs! Poor Jason has had to deal with a lot of mood swings, and he's been so good about it. Let's just cross our fingers that we don't have any mishaps this time...

My due date is May 13th.

potty training: day 2

We're all but done!

Yesterday Jacob had 1 1/2 successes filled with several accidents in between. Today, only 2 accidents. We've even been in the car - taking Jason to work, dropping Laci off at the school for speech, taking her to and from preschool, and a full hour at gymnastics. He did great! I'm really proud of him. Right around dinner time yesterday, it just clicked. He got it.

We're still working on our night-time routine, but I still have 1 day left...

potty training: day 1

After buying a brand-new giant box of diapers from Costco, I realized that Jacob has finally arrived to potty training age! Seriously, where did the time go? So, back went the diapers and with that money, I bought him some "big boy pants," juice, and snacks... with cash to spare! (We all love that, right?)

Then out came my 3-Day Potty Training ebook by Lora Jensen that I printed off when I was potty training Laci. I highly recommend it. I was feeling extremely desperate on my 3rd attempt to get Laci to go in the toilet. I knew she was ready and I knew she understood what was expected, but she kept going in her pants. After reading this book and changing a few of my tactics, she was literally potty-trained within the first hour!

And now, it's Jacob's turn. I wish I could say it's been that easy. However, it is only day 1. So far, we've had one half-success - making it to the toilet mid-poop. He's definitely caught on that he needs to tell me when he needs to go - he just tells me as he's starting instead of right before. His excitement and understanding are encouraging. With two more days to go, I'm very hopeful!

More updates to come...

boring

So, I'm lacking in posts simply because my life is very full of the mundane. Who wants to hear about my daily to-do's all the time? It's bad enough hearing them echoing around my head all day!



So here's somewhat of a synopsis of the last few weeks:


Jason has worked every Saturday for 5 weeks. Two weeks ago he worked a 90-hour week. He had to meet some crazy deadline on the first half of the project, and he did it when no one at work thought he would! He's still working long hours - 16-hour days - to finish the second half of the project that needs to be completed by Monday. This means he'll most likely be working yet another Saturday. (Sigh.)

Laci is LOVING preschool and gymnastics... my little sunshine girl! Everything she sets her mind to, she jumps in with both feet and a happy heart.

Jacob is speaking several new words every day. The million-dollar question that he asks several times a day is, "what's this?" so that he can sound out the answer. It is such a fun stage of toddlerhood. He also loves to sing! He and Laci often sing primary songs as they play. (I'm impressed at how much they know! ...So, they really do listen in primary and FHE!)

As for myself, I can't wait for my mom to come into town! She and four of my brothers will be staying at my Grandma's house for a few days of fall break. We can't wait!