New idea

Well, Ken and I have tried just about everything to get the girls to mind the house rules, not fight, do their chores, etc.  We had a points system that the girls had helped to create, and it worked for a while.  They were doing really well, and everyone was happy and harmonious in the house.


I'm not sure what changed, but it was drastic and everything was instant chaos.  I'm sure that most of it was their father instructing them not to listen to Ken and me and that there was nothing I can do about it (Victorville courts do not allow corporal punishment and they include "time-outs" in the definition of corporal punishment).  


So, Ken and I have spent the last month and a half frustrated and ticked off with the girls.  Their behavior has been very poor in this house, so I found a great template on Heritage Makers and made it my own.  I didn't like the pink backing with daisies, so I changed it to green with sunflowers.  I went through each card and made changes that worked for our family on the rewards.

This is the back of each of the cards

There are 54 cards - each with a different reward

One of the cards

Next on my list of ideas was a stumper.  How the heck was I going to have these cards held?  I don't want the girls to lose them or destroy them, and I would prefer for the cards to be viewable so they can all see who is earning cards.  


I was very proud of the idea that I came up with.  I got some scrapbook paper, each in the girls' favorite colors with some stickers that they would like.  I had the paper laminated so it would be stronger and then let the girls decorate the smaller section.  Using my sewing machine, I zig-zagged the two pieces together to make a pocket.  Whoo-hoo!  I was so proud of myself.  This was a good idea and I was able to sew!  (OK, so the sewing is a bit crooked, but it worked.)

The pockets sit outside the girls' room so they can be seen easily and often

This is how the pockets look with a reward in them

This morning, Taylor earned a reward card for not only getting all of her chores done this week with minimal reminding, but she is always willing to help with whatever we ask of her.  She is excited that she chose the "Stay up late as you want night."


Now, for purely embarrassing purposes, here is the main reason that Ken and I needed to find a new way to motivate the girls.  Mandy is the picky eater.  It does not matter if she has eaten that particular dish before, if it looks different, she won't eat it.  Typically, I do not force the girls to eat their food, but they will have to choose to go hungry.  This time, however, Mandy thought it would be better to give the puppy her food to get out of eating.  Well, the puppy isn't supposed to have human food, so we told her she had to finish all of the chicken (she only had one chicken tender on her plate - total!).  She threw a fit, so we decided to feed her like a baby to make sure the food didn't end up on the floor or in the napkin.  It wasn't pretty.

We weren't mean.  We waited for her to finish chewing and then swallow, but she hated that it was done, and finished eating on her own.  Amazingly, at the end of all of this, Mandy exclaimed, "This food was really good!"  Ugh, really??