Friday, July 12, 2013

A Downside to Motherhood

So yesterday I get a message from my sister-in-law, who watches my children while I go to work. Here's the picture it contained:

Apparently her son and my son decided to conduct an experiment and see what would happen if they picked at a crack in the linoleum. Imagine that! A hole!

So what do we do? Spank them? Have a talking to about destruction of property? Make them pay (monetarily) for the damage? Have them help repair the damage? How about all of the above?

Last night after we went through dinner, baths, and getting ready for bed, Eli had to pick out toys to sell (it was time to downsize our toys anyway) in order to make some money to pay for half the damage he did. We didn't go through his closet, yet, but we'll do that this weekend. As of now, here's what he's decided he can part with:

I'm not sure how happy my husband was, when he came home from golfing, to see the middle choice, but such is life. E has other golf clubs. I was putting the clubs in the holes when E made sure I knew that the red one goes in the center. Why that matters, I have no idea.

Needless to say the whole ordeal took nearly 45 minutes and half a box of Kleenex. He was unhappy camper having to choose toys to sell. I had to tell him no a few times... he wanted to pick books (NO!!!), broken toys (those don't count), plastic easter eggs (really? c'mon now...). But in the end I think he parted with a few things that he'll miss and we'll go through his closet to donate to Goodwill some of the smaller stuff he has accumulated.

I'm not sure who the process was more traumatic for - me or him. He did a good job and I hated seeing him SO upset... even though I did take a picture of him upset to add to the scrapbook with the story. (Does that make me horrible... hmmm...).

Hopefully he learns his lesson and will not randomly destroy things that aren't meant to be destroyed. Only time will tell.



2 comments:

  1. Aww. Parenting is hard work, but he's lucky he has you to teach him lessons in responsibility instead of just letting him not learn from it. Good job Momma!

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    Replies
    1. Aw, thanks.. it definitely is hard work. We try, though. And try again. lol

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