Do you bribe your children? It’s okay, I won’t tell anyone. I fully admit that, although I’m not too fond of any “reward” type system, bribery sometimes works. At least that’s the plan.
Some people call it allowance. Some call it commission (yes, I’m referring to Dave Ramsey). All in all, it’s a straight up bribe. You do something I want, I’ll give you something you want. Hmm. Sounds in a way like our capitalist system – but that’s for another discussion and I digress….
So remember that post not too long ago about sleep and how my little is depriving herself – and myself – some precious minutes and hours of nightly sleep with her crawling into our crowded bed? Well, I still don’t mind that she does it on the nights her daddy works, but when she starts whining from lights out on the nights he is home, it’s become somewhat of a stressor. Especially when it’s really important that she sleep in her own bed, if you know what I mean. So I’ve decided to hit up the reward system. And I know just what to use as a negotiation tool….
“Hey sweetie. How about this. For every day you wake up in your own bed, you can get a quarter.” (She has a major fascination with quarters and has no concept of value. Winning!) Her eyes light up, but there’s still a hint of doubt in there. Wait for it….
“And when you collect enough quarters – like twenty – we can go to Yogurtland!”
And that, my friend, are the magic words to her ears. Seriously. She asks me almost everyday after school if we can go and can’t seem to grasp the concept of “special occasion.” So right now, I’ve earned the one up.
I made sure to explain that this is a habit that is a bit hard to break, so it won’t happen every night – and that’s okay! We’ll keep trying and keep going. Some nights, I’ll even give her the option of cashing in her quarter for a slumber party with either her siblings or on her daddy’s side of the bed. (Mommy’s side is sacred.)
So here on our bulletin board is pinned a Ziploc bag with three shiny quarters, just waiting for about 17 more so they can take an exciting adventure to get traded in for some froyo. Little passes by those quarters and can’t stop talking about it with excitement. And mommy’s pretty excited too, because she’s had the most comfortable sleep she’s had in MONTHS!
Yup. Bribery. Here’s to hoping it works. Thanks Berenstain Bears!
This is part of the Write 31 Days series, “Going on Six.” To read more from this series, please click here. Thank you!
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