>>to not really care. The really really hard part is keeping a straight face. >>My daughter is really really funny and her eyes sparkle like crazy when >>she's pushing boundries. I'm going to stay consistent but it all seems to >>fall apart when she flashes me a smile and I start laughing. It's SOOOO >>hard. >> > > Tell me about it. Our 4 year old Alexis is much the same way.
My son (4 as well) gets that "gleam" (as my wife likes to call it) in his eye when he's doing something he *knows* is wrong. He's got a good imagination and sometimes will slip "into character" as one of the trains in Thomas, a doggie or firefighter. Last night he was a doggie, and I told him that he had to pick up his train set off the floor. So he went around the living room on all 4's picking up sections of track, putting them in his mouth like a dog would hold a bone and then going to the bin and dropping them in. I will say this, Thomas has done wonders for his vocabulary. The other day when his sister (6 year old princess) did not want to play with him, he said, "I'm very cross with Elizabeth." He also uses phrases like "cinders and ashes!" or "bust my buffers!" Then again, he tells his mother that dinner is "spectacular" and tells me that I'm "adorable." I'm actually starting to cringe though, because he's hitting that wonderful curiosity stage that had me taking everything apart on my mom. Yesterday he asked my wife, "mommy, where do frogs poop?" Then he was very concerned that they didn't go in the potty. His punishments vary depending on what he's doing and what he's supposed to do and how many times in the past 5 minutes I've told him not to do it. For example, when he chokes the dog... and no, that's not an exaggeration, we have a miniature dachshund that he likes to pick up by the neck or lay on and hold by the neck... he is usually picked up and removed, usually to the stairs. If/when he goes back (or the dog comes to him) and it happens again in the same relative time frame, he's picked up again and spanked. Same thing for when he abuses his sister, either by pulling her hair, kicking or hitting her. However, if he's been told to pick up his train set(s), the punishment is usually me picking up one or more pieces and telling him that he'll have them back "later" which generally gets him moving. It's all relative. The important thing is to follow through... and not to laugh in their line of site. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~| Adobe® ColdFusion® 8 software 8 is the most important and dramatic release to date Get the Free Trial http://ad.doubleclick.net/clk;207172674;29440083;f Archive: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/cf-community/message.cfm/messageid:289748 Subscription: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/cf-community/subscribe.cfm Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/unsubscribe.cfm?user=89.70.5
