Wed 30 Jan 2008
Diana and Nana
And now, it’s Pat’s turn to post:
One day I was taking care of Diana, and she was playing with fingerpaints. She made some colorful pictures (of course they went on the refrigerator) and she made a fine mess on her hands.
Her father Jack was on his way to pick her up after work, so I told Diana, “Let’s go scrub your hands now.”
“NO!” she yelled.
Oh, great. Her father’s going to be here soon, Diana’s a mess, and she doesn’t want to get cleaned up.
Or does she? I thought about it for a few seconds, and then tried saying it to her another way. I told her, “Let’s go wash your hands, just like you always do.”
Her face brightened, and she said, “OK!” And she ran off to the bathroom.
Conclusion: With people, regardless of their age, sometimes it’s just a matter of saying things the right way.
David said,
Wed 30 Jan 2008 at 13:52
Incentives work also.
Yao-Lin said,
Wed 30 Jan 2008 at 15:13
Oh what an astute observation! It is exactly the same with felines ordering humans into action - ” may I have my steak” does not work as well as ” get in the kitchen and cook my steak like you always do”.
x
AskaLesbian said,
Thu 31 Jan 2008 at 10:49
I love that! She thought you were going to scrub her hands like a dirty potato!
My sister was explaining to her 3 yr old about her upcoming baptism. Dee was telling her about the little sprinkling of water and that she would then be part of God’s family.
My niece thought about it for a few minutes, then started crying. “I don’t want to go live with God!!”