They say necessity is the mother of invention. We could say that necessity is the mother of excuses. Our kids come up with the most clever excuses for not cleaning up their toys. We do our share of getting after our kids to pick up their toys. So much so, when I saw a sign in a kid shop that said: "Pick Up Your Toys" in glittery letters, I almost bought it, hung it up and made my kids memorize it.
We've heard all kinds of excuses like:
"My legs are too tired." (And how do your legs pick up anything anyway?)
"They're (the toys are) too heavy."
"I didn't play with these, he did." (Blame it on the brother tactic used for lots of other things too.)
We've threatened to throw them away. Karsten's response? "Throw them away! Throw them away!"
I've heard lots of excuses but Zachary came up with a new one tonight.
"Hey mom, there's a card missing in that game. Can you go get it and put it away? I'm really busy right now."
"How about you go pick it up and put it away when you're done?" I reply.
"I can't. I'm not an expert at putting away toys," he replies.
An expert?
"Well, you better practice so you can become and expert at picking up at toys," I reply.
And believe me, I can't wait til he is an expert at picking up toys. I know I don't need the practice.
3 comments:
Hi Gayle,
Here is a great link to blog post on a clean up song. Be sure to watch the video clips (little boxes on the botton) because in one of the, two little Asian girls are cleaning up with a ferver that is truly inspiring!
http://simplesongs.blogs.com/head_shoulders_knees_and_/2008/06/making-transistions-easier-with-music.html
Ok, here is really the link. T
Thanks Tahirih! That's a great site with video of kids who are enthusiastically picking up toys. Awesome!
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