Operation Attitude Change
If something does not change, I will totally lose it!! So, I was talking to Autumn's sweet piano teacher about how much they fight and she shared with me what her mom would do to them. If they fought they had to clean all the baseboards in the house! All of them! She said they had the cleanest baseboards in the whole town!! So, I was inspired!! Could that really help? Would that make a difference in their life...well, it is worth a shot right!! We have chore charts. They don't always work. But see I don't reward for the chore charts, maybe that is part of the problem with them. I feel that if I am expected to cook, clean, wash clothes, make lunches, and drive them around doing extra stuff...then they should be expected to help as well. I don't get paid for what I do, right? Anyway...we started on Monday. The attitude began and so did the cleaning!! They finished their chores and then more attitude from the seven year old. He seems to think he does not have to answer his sister when she is talking to her. Just ignore her. ALL THE TIME! So he had to scrub the kitchen floor on his hands and knees with a couple of wash rags. Yep, that's right! About 1/4 the way through he wanted a break...ummmmm...no way!! He worked and scrubbed until the floor was clean!!!! My kitchen floor is now sparkling!!
Tuesday...more daily chores...and then more attitude. This time from the nine year old. For some reason she just thinks she can be rude to her brother all the time!! Arguing over the Wii, just plain old attitude!!! She ended up having to clean the inside of the refrigerator! Yep that's right! My shelves inside my refrigerator are sparkling!!
!
She did a really good job! Then I got a really nice letter from her saying how sorry she was and she would try really hard to have JOY ( Jesus, Others, Yourself)!! Wonderful! Very sweet! They are now grounded from video games, or tv for 2 days for fighting over the Wii. *sigh*
Wednesday...today....here we go again. I had to go up to the church for an evaluation and they started out really good! No fighting, no rudeness! But, it did not last long! Today is the day to test if I have to obey all the time or just some of the time. You would have thought they had been raised in a barn!!!! Craziness consumed my nine year old! I had asked her 3 times to settle down but no! And then when we got home she was so tired that the rudeness to her brother showed up. She didn't listen to him at all. He asked her 2 times to stop and she just kept on!!! I was sitting right there too!!! REALLY!!! Come on!!! So you know that wall behind the trash can that get absolutely yucky with food splatters...well it is clean now, along with the outside of both refrigerators! My house will be really clean by the end of the month :)
I can't tell you how it is going to work out. I just asked them if they could tell me why they had to clean and neither one of them could tell me. *SIGH* Dang! I will continue. I will continue to talk to them, encourage them, share scriptures with them and anything else I can come up with. I am at my wits end! Spankings don't work well...they do but just for the day. Washing the mouth out with soap works for the day as well...BUT I need something long term. Something that will last. Something that may change how they view themselves and how they treat others. I am possibly going to plan a service they can do. Volunteering may help change their heart. I know that God is in control. I know the He is the only one who can truly change a heart but I am praying that He will use me as the tool to do so!!!
The last picture is of them writing sorry notes to their Sunday School teachers for the behavior that they had at church. We will be writing these notes as long as it takes. I need them to take "ownership" of the behavior that they choose to have.
Praying that this helps us out. Praying that God moves my children in a might way!! Will you pray with me? Will you ask God to move my children in a might way?? My hearts desire is that they will seek Him in all they do! Including how they treat others. I want so desperately for them to set the example for others to follow instead of always being the one following!!!!!
Hope your summer is starting off better than mine! Happy Sunshine Days :)
Tuesday...more daily chores...and then more attitude. This time from the nine year old. For some reason she just thinks she can be rude to her brother all the time!! Arguing over the Wii, just plain old attitude!!! She ended up having to clean the inside of the refrigerator! Yep that's right! My shelves inside my refrigerator are sparkling!!
!
She did a really good job! Then I got a really nice letter from her saying how sorry she was and she would try really hard to have JOY ( Jesus, Others, Yourself)!! Wonderful! Very sweet! They are now grounded from video games, or tv for 2 days for fighting over the Wii. *sigh*
Wednesday...today....here we go again. I had to go up to the church for an evaluation and they started out really good! No fighting, no rudeness! But, it did not last long! Today is the day to test if I have to obey all the time or just some of the time. You would have thought they had been raised in a barn!!!! Craziness consumed my nine year old! I had asked her 3 times to settle down but no! And then when we got home she was so tired that the rudeness to her brother showed up. She didn't listen to him at all. He asked her 2 times to stop and she just kept on!!! I was sitting right there too!!! REALLY!!! Come on!!! So you know that wall behind the trash can that get absolutely yucky with food splatters...well it is clean now, along with the outside of both refrigerators! My house will be really clean by the end of the month :)
I can't tell you how it is going to work out. I just asked them if they could tell me why they had to clean and neither one of them could tell me. *SIGH* Dang! I will continue. I will continue to talk to them, encourage them, share scriptures with them and anything else I can come up with. I am at my wits end! Spankings don't work well...they do but just for the day. Washing the mouth out with soap works for the day as well...BUT I need something long term. Something that will last. Something that may change how they view themselves and how they treat others. I am possibly going to plan a service they can do. Volunteering may help change their heart. I know that God is in control. I know the He is the only one who can truly change a heart but I am praying that He will use me as the tool to do so!!!
The last picture is of them writing sorry notes to their Sunday School teachers for the behavior that they had at church. We will be writing these notes as long as it takes. I need them to take "ownership" of the behavior that they choose to have.
Praying that this helps us out. Praying that God moves my children in a might way!! Will you pray with me? Will you ask God to move my children in a might way?? My hearts desire is that they will seek Him in all they do! Including how they treat others. I want so desperately for them to set the example for others to follow instead of always being the one following!!!!!
Hope your summer is starting off better than mine! Happy Sunshine Days :)
3 comments:
This is what CeCe does with her kids! Hard, physical manual labor.
I am going to have some of this going on at my house as well!! Have all the same issues...you are not alone!!
What great ideas! We may have to try that over here, too......at least our houses will be clean :)
Good to know my kids aren't the only ones who fight over the wii. Last week it was an down right brawl. It was gone for a week along with tv and computer. They have been super nice about sharing since. They came up with a time limit for each other, 30 minutes each. I like your idea though!
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