Well, this request just happens to come at a time when I'm already feeling quite desperate to get Zachary potty-trained. I have made the mistake of carelessly throwing bribes to the wind for months now in the event that one might actually work as an incentive. (Yes, horrible parenting skills, I know.) Yet I STILL have had absolutely no luck so far with any of them. Let's see... I have tried bribing him with a bicycle. (In my self-defense, every kid needs to learn to ride a bike at some point and he's at the perfect age for starting that, too, right?) Unfortunately, Zachary hasn't much interest in bikes yet and I don't think he even remembers the offer. I have promised to take him to Inflatable Wonderland at the mall, and now EVERY SINGLE TIME we walk past it, he looks over and announces cheerfully, "That's where I go when I'm potty-trained!" and then he merrily goes on with his little life without giving any further thought to what he might do to actually BECOME potty-trained. I'm puzzled by this. I guess he thinks it is just magically going to happen. Well, let me just pull this magic wand out...
And now, because the words "maybe when you're potty-trained" come out much too quickly and without a whole lot of thought these days (shame on me), I have now foolishly gone and suggested that MAYBE he can get an iPod when that blessed day comes. Eek! I know I REALLY shouldn't have done this, because I'm not about to buy an iPod for a 4 year-old. I didn't exactly *promise* him one, but he hasn't forgotten about it and I don't think he's going to this time. Tonight, when I got back from running an errand, I was talking to Zachary about where I'd been and what I was doing there, etc., and he says, "Mommy, kneel down so I can tell you somefing." I kneeled down and he whispered in my ear, "Maybe I am potty-trained and you will get me an iPod tomorrow!"
I don't think I have anything to worry about for now, because it's still going to take awhile for this whole process to take place, but I still feel bad that I have unintentionally gotten his hopes up like this. How do I fix this mess I've gotten myself into? What is a mother to do?
Behold the iPooped!
8 comments:
I have thought about getting my kids an mp3 player but NOT an iPod. You could get him the SanDisk Sansa Shaker mp3 player. You can get one for under $20 (512 MB) or a $30 one that is one gig. It comes in blue and to change songs they just shake it. I almost got one for each of my kids for Christmas but they had too many things on their lists. Paying 20-30 dollars to bribe my son to be potty-trained would totally be worth it to me! Maybe I'll see if there is something Joshua wants and then make it clear to him that he has to use the potty for a whole week with rare accidents to get the gift. Hmmm...I just can't think of anything he wants.
There doesn't seem to be anything Zachary wants badly enough, either. I know that an iPod would, like all his other toys, lose his interest all too soon. He's just going to have to be potty-trained for much cheaper!
Is a week without accidents a big milestone? Do they finally "get it" at that point? I wouldn't think so, but you would know much better than I! :)
This is hilarious! An ipod? Really? My girl just desperately wants to be old enough to wear mommy's lip gloss.
Yes, the word iPod has previously gone unmentioned in our household, so I was dumbfounded when it came out of Zachary's mouth. Chris and I don't have one, and I don't know if we'd ever even get one for ourselves, but maybe Zachary thought his cousins looked cool for having wires coming out of their ears. One can only wonder! :)
Oh my goodness Robin this made me laugh so hard! He is so adorable! And smart!
Yes, 1 week of no accidents or a rare one is a milestone. From a mom who has potty trained 3, I gaurantee that is something you can feel good about rewarding him for. How old is Zachary? My boys didn't train 'til 4 and Lincoln still wets at night. It is HARD to find them something that will motivate them. I think potty training can't be bribed. . from my experience. They just have to really want to or it wont work.
Funny! Who wouldn't want an iPod! I can't live without mine, sometimes when I think about it I have twinges of guilt because I always check to see if I have my ipod in the car before buckling up or doing anything in the car. And I won't check to see if all my kids are in the car until I've driven down my driveway.
I say if it works get him a cheap MP3 player.
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