Dear children,
When I ask you to do something, I really do not care if you "want" to do it or not. Sure, it would be great if you "want" to do what I ask, even better if you "like" to do what I ask, but believe me, "wanting" to do something is actually not necessary to being able to complete a task.
Seriously, as long as you do what I ask, I don't care whether or not you "wanted" to do it.
Thank you,
The management.
p.s. Mashed potatoes are not finger food. We have forks, please use them.
15 comments:
my middle little guy was like this too...refused, refused and refused to use potty - and then one day, decided enough with diapers and has NEVER been back to diapers...it was so stress-free...though I worried since I let him control the whole time frame!
Good luck!
pps: Take off your shoes before you jump on the couch.
Thank-you.
Ah, I wish my kids would grasp this concept... yet, they seem to struggle with it more often than not! Maybe... someday...
When I would get the "I don't want to" from my kids, I would immediately respond with "Well, I don't want to ______ (fill in the blank with any of the mundane, day to day, tasks that a Mom does) but, I do."
And I'm not above bribing. So there.
(as a note though, we began following the love&logic way of chores/allowance and it's worked heavenly--it was a leap of faith at first though...)
i think that this letter should go out to all the children of the world. When they receive it, they must do excatly what it says whithout any more complaining!
Also-make sure to include with the letter the little info about silverware, foreign concept for many!
Hate to tell you this, Girlfriend, but once they hit the teen years, "I don't want to" is going to sound pretty good. In comparison to variations on, "Give me your reasons for asking, then I'll tell you why my reasons for refusing are better."
And you're going to long for fingers in the mashed potatoes, too.
Definitely. So true.
So, do kids who grow up in a dictatorship understand family dynamics a bit better? Maybe this raising them in a republic is causing problems; our kids think they're in a democracy at home too and really, as parents, we just don't stinking care what they want when it comes to chores. Do they think I wash their laundry because it fills my spirit with overwhelming joy? Seriously!
You are a mean, mean mom. My oldest still prefers to use her fingers to eat and she is almost 26!
Ha ha ha! My oldest always says, "But I don't want to!" and I always say, "I'm sorry? Did I ask if you wanted to? No, I said, 'Go do that!'"
It's good to know you're the same . ..
OK...why are you writing about what happens on the Fringe??? this could very much have been my post!!!!!
Cheers!
Hi Jill thank you for going to our blog. I look forward to hearing from you again. Matt's shorts are something!
Yeah, could you forward that letter to my kids too:)
The variation in my house goes like this:
Dear child,
I didn't ask who left it there, I asked *you* to pick it up. When I want to know who left it there, that is the question I'll ask.
Now just pick it up and put it away.
Love, Mom.
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