The battle to get everyone ready and out the door is always, well, a battle. I've used every tactic and excuse I can think of to get these kids to hurry up - but they have become pros at throwing our excuses back in our faces. There was once the desperate attempt to declare I would simply leave them and then the police would come and boy would they be in trouble – but my smart 5 year old simply responded (while going as slow as ever) that if they were in trouble, I would definitely be in trouble too!
The other day we were all heading out and Mr. Man announced that whoever wasn’t ready to leave would have to go next door and stay with our elderly neighbor Mary Jane. She is the sweetest thing, and the kids adore her to pieces, but don’t enjoy being in her home very much – and so, the hurried and it worked! This morning as I was rushing to leave early to set-up for Primary, Mr. Man hollered down to the boys who were quite involved in their playing “I hope you’re getting dressed for church!” Mr. T, showing absolutely no sign of movement towards his father’s request, yelled right back , “We’re not going to church; we’re going to Mary Jane’s house!”
So much for that one! Mary Jane had gone to church too, so thankfully he had no choice in the matter! Any ideas for getting three kids out the door without wanting to bang my head on the door in the process?
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6 comments:
I don't have a lot of experience in this area but have heard of parents giving a time limit - for instance: "The car leaves for church in 5 minutes." Then, give a one minute or two minute warning. After the 5 minutes is up - if they aren't in the car, you pick them up in whatever they are wearing (you may need to grab shoes and a coat) and off you go. That would mean they might be wearing pjs to church but hopefully they'd learn to be ready.
That may be too mean for some - but not for me. ;)
Oh, dear. Your kids are too smart!
I take the kids one by one and strap them into their carseats so they can't go anywhere. Of course this is so much easier with an attached garage very close to where we are all getting ready. Then I hear crying and screaming (just from the little one really) for about five minutes, but at least he is screaming from the car and not his bedroom! We get buckled into the car like four or five times a day,so they have learned to hate it. That is unless we are going to Sams Club where they can eat samples.
I have a snack in a little bag ready for my kids and bribe them in the car. I tell them that if they don't get in the car when I"m ready then they don't get the snack. They've never gone without the snack.
There's always the "let's race, kids against mommy, to the car". Sometimes that works. There are the imagination games like let's board the spaceship, taking off for Mars in 5 minutes. Best of luck. Parenthood is a series of "well, that one didn't work. what else should I try?"
I think parenthood can be summed up by the answer to a wife's question retold during sacrament this past Sunday:
Wife "What is Eternal Happiness?"
Husband "After an eternity, you will be happy!"
Mr. Man
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