Five Things

Katy has been trying my patience for the past few weeks, and yesterday was no exception. If anything, it was one of the worst days we've had in a while. I seem to remember Ryan getting this way close to his 5th birthday too. Some sort of need to push the limits and see what she can get away with now.

Lately she has been acting extremely ungrateful for her possesions. She has been treating her things with a total disregard for their value. I reached my breaking point yesterday and told her to go to her room and pick 5 things (pulled this one from Stephanie's mommy playbook).

She brought back a fabric baby book, an eraser, a broken mobile to her doll crib, a stuffed animal she hasn't played with in months, and a tube of lip gloss. She looked rather smug until I told her that this was all that she would have to play with for the following week!

I then put all other toys in her room into her closet or the playroom. I gated off the playroom and locked her closet and declared Olivia's room off-limits.

I was expecting a fit of monstrous proportions but she actually accepted the punishment gracefully. I let her play with her five 'toys' for a little while to let things sink in a bit, and then I told her how proud I was of her acceptance of the punishment without any arguing or crying. Since she had acted so maturely, I allowed her to choose 2 additional items that she would be able to play with that week. This time she chose much more carefully and selected a webkin and her leapster.

Hopefully she will become a bit more appreciative of her numerous blessings over the next week!