New Form of Punishment

As most parents know, you are always trying to figure out new ways to punish your children- time outs, taking things away, no TV time, sit in the corner, etc... I started to find that these things were not working for one of my children (I will not name any names but I am sure you can figure it out:)

I talked to Ben about it one night and he decided that she needed to write sentences. She can work on her penmanship as well as sitting in a time out writing. It has worked wonders. I have even learned to use her spelling words in the sentences. We have gone from sentences like, "I will not lie to my mom", "I will not throw a transformer at my mother's back", "I will not spit on my brother" to more creative ones.

This morning, she was screaming at me a lot. I told her that she would have sentences when she came home. I looked at her spelling words and saw that she had words "mean" and "me". So, when she comes home today she is writing, "It is mean for me to scream at my mother." 50x's.

Madison has had to do it as well but I have not quite figured out how to get words like, centipede, trimming, dragging, libraries, married, scurried, ceiling, citizen, cinnamon etc... in the sentences. So, unless she gets in trouble for dragging a married centipede to the library, I am will not able to use her spelling words.

Regardless, this punishment is starting to work and I will probably start making a book for my children's future spouses:)

Daily Moments

As I picked up Ainsley today from school she had a beautiful snowflake that she made and a note for me. The note read, "To mommy, I love you so much. I know you get mad at me but I still love you. Love Ainsley."

While driving in the car today, I was telling Logan about a Joy School field trip we have planned to go to the police station. Logan asks, "Are the police men going to shoot us?"

Ninja Fish

Logan received some money from his "Way Far Away" grandpa for Christmas. The first thing he wanted to buy was a new fish. Madison has a fish that she saved up money for, so Logan wanted his own fish. We went to the pet store and he picked out his Beta fish. He was so excited and when it came to deciding a name, he said he wanted to name it "Ninja Turtle". I told him that it was not a turtle, it was a fish. He said, "Then I will name it Ninja Fish!" I asked if it can be Ninja for short and he was upset about that. So, the new fish is "Ninja Fish". For some reason, the girls keep calling it "Prince". What??? Too funny.

Logan's Favorite Spot

I entered my family room the other day and saw this...

Logan playing his Nintendo DS

Ben's Man Cave

Let me just start by saying that every man AND woman needs a "Man Cave". Ever since we have bought this house, Ben has been saying that he NEEDS a "man cave". A place he can go to with his books and Playstation 3 and call his room. A place that he can shut the door and not be disturbed by everyone else in the house. I always joked around and said, "Can I have a woman cave too???" The reality is that the kids find me everywhere. As most mothers know, there is no place of refuge when you have young kids.

Anyway, after Christmas, his dream became a reality. He moved his PS3 into a room and we found a great deal on some Chaise lounge chairs at Costco. I have always thought that this would benefit Ben but I never knew how much I would enjoy it! I love that he has a place to watch ESPN, Pawn Stars, Mythbusters, etc... I love that he can play Assassins Creed and I don't have to know the entire storyline and what level he is on. I love that he can be down there for an hour before the kids start asking, "where's daddy?" I love that I can do the dishes or clean the kitchen or fold laundry and watch Biggest Loser, Oprah, Grey's Anatomy, etc... and not have him rolling his eyes. I always joked around that Tivos/DVR's saved our marriage but now I can say that the "man cave" is also improving it. I have learned that the more things a man has to help him unwind, the better husband and father he will be. Not every man needs a motorcycle, too many pocket knives, too many guns, PS3, and a man cave to do it-but it has all benefited our family tremendously.

So...for all the women out there- I highly recommend "The Man Cave!"


BEN'S MAN CAVE

Snow Trip 2010

We are so blessed to live so close to snow but that we do not have to live in it! We love taking one day a year to go sledding. This year, was not the best time we have had. It was freezing, we got stuck in traffic and after about 10 minutes, Logan wet his pants. Look at all he is wearing!!! So, Logan and I spent most of the time in the van watching a movie while Ben went sledding with the girls. Everyone did get some fun out of it but we are hoping for a better trip next year!