We made tough decisions in the early years and it has served us well.....ESPECIALLY now. All those things that we have been so careful about in the past is now being used as 'currency' as I desperately try to navigate through difficult behavioral situations. I'm desperate. I need bargaining tools - and I think that my years of holding out should allow me to use what I need to keep whatever little sanity I have left these days.
The biggest bribery these days center around the dreaded task of potty training. The whole number one thing wasn't so bad. Gianna's not super into stickers, but M&M's, Skittles and the revered gummy treats have all been marvelous motivation in getting results. Pooping in the potty, however, has been a entirely different beast. Nothing helped even a little bit to convince her to get down to business and relieve her fears. (And that fear was due to a horrible bought of constipation over the summer - which REALLY set us back!) I was pulling out all the stops, promising her the moon, all for naught.....so I thought.
Apparently I was desperate enough to stumble upon the right bargaining chip at the right time. Hail to you, Oh Disney Princesses! Snow White has come to my aid. I had bought a Snow White costume and a Snow White wig prior to Christmas and decided to hold off giving them to her. I am SO glad for that inspiration. When we were making a bit of progress I showed it to her and her eyes nearly popped out of her head. I quickly hid it away and reminded her that she wouldn't see it again until we had some serious success.
Well, Gianna plays Snow White all the time and she was just beside herself as she imagined having a costume to wear as she acted out the story over and over. BINGO. One day, with a little sneaky prodding from Mom, she hit the jackpot. Oh, the joy. Oh, the dancing. Oh, the cheering.
And then, a princess was born. I give you - Snow White:
Thank heavens I videoed her when I put the costume on the first time. Her voice was immediately raised an octave or two and she got right into character.
Here's to bribery and here's to Snow White!
OH MY GOODNESS MARIA! That is riciculously cute. Love it. I sympathize with the poop trouble- Madeline was the worst! It took her months to potty train with #2 because of the constipation/fear cyle. One word: Miralax. Saved our lives and sanity. Dr. says it is extremely safe and can be used for long periods of time. We would take it every other day until she had several successes on the potty and could get over the fear. It was so stressful and had us both in tears many times. I feel you! It will get better!!
ReplyDeleteWay to go, Gianna! We are exactly opposite here. A doesn't care if she is wet, so she won't stop playing when she needs to go. I just find her in wet panties constantly. She can stay dry overnight, but not for an hour during the day...Go figure.
ReplyDelete