Comments on: Discipline http://www.thedhx.com/2007/11/18/discipline/ A mom and a stepmom share stories, ideas, friendship and family Sun, 12 Oct 2008 15:15:07 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6.2 By: Jill http://www.thedhx.com/2007/11/18/discipline/#comment-145 Jill Wed, 21 Nov 2007 15:18:49 +0000 http://www.thedhx.com/2007/11/18/discipline/#comment-145 I think the main thing that I keep coming back to where it's really me -- I need something that doesn't bug G -- is that finding food-related trash in the living room drives me crazy. I've tried a bunch of different things. What seems to be working best so far is tell the kids that it drives me crazy because I'm the one who cleans the house and I hate finding and cleaning up garbage -- food-related trash and crumbs and little spills -- in the living room. It seems to be pretty inseparable from eating in the living room. I told them I'm willing to clean the house if they don't eat in the living room, but that if they do insist on eating in the living room, I'm going to recruit them to help with the cleaning. They still sometimes wander into the living room with food, but it's less and less. (And it's fine if they take it in their rooms -- it's just the shared hangout space that's such a sensitive spot for me.) What do you think about this approach? Do you have any suggestions? I think the main thing that I keep coming back to where it’s really me — I need something that doesn’t bug G — is that finding food-related trash in the living room drives me crazy. I’ve tried a bunch of different things. What seems to be working best so far is tell the kids that it drives me crazy because I’m the one who cleans the house and I hate finding and cleaning up garbage — food-related trash and crumbs and little spills — in the living room. It seems to be pretty inseparable from eating in the living room. I told them I’m willing to clean the house if they don’t eat in the living room, but that if they do insist on eating in the living room, I’m going to recruit them to help with the cleaning. They still sometimes wander into the living room with food, but it’s less and less. (And it’s fine if they take it in their rooms — it’s just the shared hangout space that’s such a sensitive spot for me.)

What do you think about this approach? Do you have any suggestions?

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