RL update

[estepheia]

"Mommie, you're so mean!" (Toyah)
Last night I snapped and smacked her, then told her in no uncertain terms that she'll have to dress herself from now on. This morning I dressed her in her shoes and coat (it's snowing) - over her pjs and threatened to drag her to kindergarten half naked. She's now moping but getting dressed. I'm fed up with acting like her servant.

Today I'm teaching English again. We are learning fairy tale words. Last week my little class learnt sentences like: The dragon lives in the forest. The dragon marries the unicorn (great hilarity) and the prince lives in the castle. This week we'll add adjectives. They know all the colors already, it's just a matter of sticking them into the sentences.

My translation is not going as fast as I'd like. *panics*
Maybe it's because I'm addicted to Tina's Pokemon game? I love her little gameboy. Mother and daughter bond over discussions about monsters and where to get them. LOL.
Tina hates her cheerleading practice. I'm not surprsised. The young trainers are horrendously inept. I feel tempted to find a sports teacher somewhere who can show them the ropes. Bleeding amateurs! Of course I have to find out now - I doubt we can cancel the contract now. I think we're stuck with paying for another year. *sigh*

Right, looks like Toyah is dressed and ready to go. Toodles.

Comments

[hellsbells.livejournal.com]

I'm fed up with acting like her servant.

*smiles* I'm not the only one then?! How old is Toyah?
My daughter is almost 6 and I swear I'll still be dressing her at the age of 10. She's moody, whiny, bitchy, rude and whatever else fits in with that.

In fact, just this moment I have sent her upstairs and she's screaming her head off and probably lying on the floor and kicking it judging by the noise.

She won't get dressed by herself yet everything I do is either wrong or hurts her. "Mum, you just scratched me!", "Mum, your rings just scratched me!", "You hurt my toes when you put my socks on!"

Please tell me this ends? My son was nothing like this, although I have to repeatedly tell him to do things and he still doesn't do them.

Oh well, only another hour until school opens...

[estepheia.livejournal.com]

Toyah is four and a half. She *can* do it - just refuses to. I am prepared to pick out her clothes, but she can get her undies our of the drawer herself.
But the threat of having to go out in pjs, shoes, woolen hat and jacket, worked. She dressed herself, was proud of herself too. Was chatty and happy on our way to kindergarten.
I think the secret is to only threaten them with things you're willing to go through with. They don't set the table? They don't get to eat.

I'm curious to see how long Toyah's obedience lasts.
She's a lazy little critter, but usually she's good natured and cuddly, a spoiled but cute little princess.

I don't think the 'do this, do that' chorus ever ends - not until they move out of the house....

[liliaeth]

And even then....

[driade.livejournal.com]

The dragon marries the unicorn...

Am I the only one suddenly overwhelmed with desire to read this fairy tale? :)

[estepheia.livejournal.com]

Heee.
I often make sentences that are wrong. It amuses them greatly. Kids....
Today I'll dig out my secret Playmobil stash and we'll enact a fairy tale. Who knows, the dragon and unicorn might indeed marry. :-)

[soundingsea.livejournal.com]

If they do marry, you should recap the tale for us in your LJ. :) Mmm, transgressive fairytale love.

[janedavitt.livejournal.com]

I'm fed up with acting like her servant.

Word. My 8 year old comes in from school, shrugs out of snowy boots, backpack, snowpants, hat, gloves, coat...and leaves them in a heap one inch inside the door. For me to pick up, empty backpack of lunch debris, hang up clothes, clean up snow...

Or to scream, 'Eleanor, get back here right NOW!' so we argue the minute she comes home.

::sigh::

[estepheia.livejournal.com]

With just one kid you can actually get tough. With two I can't for example cancel lunch when they don't tidy up, because I can't punish both girls for one girl's misdemeanours. :-)
If I make lunch then I can't tell the little one she can't have any. She thinks that's unfair and gets cross. But I can make her understand that there won't be any lunch because as long as the shoes are lying around in a heap I won't cook.
Viktoria is often good when I give her a choice. I try to make her feel powerful whenever I can, because the inability to affect things annoys and frustrates her. But there are things where I have to make a stand and that's where the friction occurs.
Also, Toyah has a vivid imagination, so in her head things don't look the same as in my head.

Kids are so accustomed to parents *performing* for them all the time, it jolts them out of their complacency when their parents go on strike. With an 8 year old girl there should be things you could use as a lever.... Not privileges, more the every day stuff...
Don't shop. Let the food become scarce. Don't restock favorite food. That should make it obvious what happens if people don't do their every day stuff. :-)

If there's a failssafe method to get kids to do these things, I have yet to hear about it.

[janedavitt.livejournal.com]

I have an 8 and a 3 year old which is tricky as I have very different expectations and the 8 year old can't see why I ask her to do more than her sister. The attitude of , 'I didn't make that mess, why should I clean it' gets me. Yes, Lauren is old enough to start to help tidy but she's not exactly able to make beds, put away clean clothes, tidy bookshelves, put dirty clothes in the laundry...all of which E could do but doesn't.

Oh well. Mostly we get along.

[estepheia.livejournal.com]

Five years is quite a gap.
My children love each other dearly - they are 2 and a half years apart. They kiss and hug and they often gang up on their parents. Usually that's good, but if the eldest dresses the younger one, I can't really berate the little one - she does after all end up dressed and getting other people to do her shit is not such a useless skill. ;-)

But still.
Well, I'll have to persevere and try to be stern for a few weeks. Maybe it will work. Toyah's standard excuse is: "I'm too small" - which drives me nuts.

[/rant]

Anyway, today sure qualifies as one of those days.

[luvs-phoenix.livejournal.com]

Your Toyah and my Xander.

Gerrrrrrrrr

[estepheia.livejournal.com]

*sigh*
You have my sympathy.
Actually, I'm glad I have girls... well most of the time...

Today I'd sure like to strangle mine. They've been hell on my eardrums. *whine*

[luvs-phoenix.livejournal.com]

All Xan has done since he got back from his Grams is back talk me. Or burst into tears. Or both.

::hugs::