My 5 year old got in trouble yesterday for a laundry list of things. It just was not her day.
One of those days where she decided to whine, hit her little brother, yell, throw fits, not eat her fruit, ignore us, and not do her normal 5 year old chores.
What really bothered me was that she was complaining about her life. After Christmas and right before her birthday. She tried to tell me how unfair her life is.
At 5!
"I never get to do that ....., How come I don't get this......, It isn't fair sometimes."
So in my brilliant Mommy ways - I cane up with a new idea to discipline her in stead of the "not really working anymore" time-out.
"Today - you are in boot camp. You are going to be mommy for a day and see how hard it is compared to what you do. You will do laundry, make my your brother's bottles, clean up house, and load dishwasher."
To my surprise, she yelled, "Awesome!"
My little girl stepped up to the plate and hit it out of the park.
She folded laundry without complaining, fed the dog, told me I couldn't have a snack until 10 am, made me take quiet time (aaahhhhhh!) put her brother in time out, and unloaded the dishwasher!
And all without one complaint. She actually enjoyed it.
I was amazed and started thinking "Am I missing out on all the Mommy fun?"
Needless to say at the end of the day, she asked "Mommy can I do it for a week?"
So yes, my plan backfired.
My daughter loved being Mommy-for-a-Day, she didn't mind doing things around the house, and now she wants to do it for a whole week!
Yikes!
Then again, maybe to my benefit.
Can I put my 5 year old to work in the house without DFAC calling? It is against any labor laws since she is WAY below 16.
I don't know and honestly don't care.
Not only have I realized that sometimes I forget the joy in being a mommy and taking care of my kids.
But now, I just realized I may not have to do laundry anymore. :)
I have a 5 year old Mommy that is willing to do it!
5 comments:
That is awesome! Oddly enough, I think I understand vaguely how your daughter may be feeling. Sometimes adults do tend to underestimate a child's capabilities and desire to do things. I always wanted to help my mother with things when I was probably too small and more in the way in her opinion, but when she did let me help, I learned from her and became very helpful and those are still some of my favorite memories from childhood.
This post cracked me up! I think it's great that you tried a creative approach and that you found out that your daughter wants to help. I say, let her. It's important for kids to learn skills, have responsibilities, and develop a sense of partnership in their family. If you wait until her teen years, she won't be nearly so willing. I say go with it. Within reason, of course. :)
That's so funny! I think my 6-year-old would probably react the same way. We actually call her "Little Momma" sometimes because she likes to take charge and has no fear of taking over someone else's job -- she just doesn't want to do hers!
Good lord is this hilarious. My five-year-old is the same way. We went to a restaurant last week, and he was just so crazy that my husband told him to run around the restaurant as a 'punishment'. (And sent someone to watch him, of course.) So he ran. And he enjoyed it so much that he ran twice more.
At least he was too tired to be all crazy after that.
Wow, what a story. Your kid sounds awesome. I wish I'd thought of that when my kids were that age!
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