Every Day:
- Communicate
- Work
- Help
- Move
- Relax
These are the five “rules” I posted on the fridge in March, in hopes that we could have a little balance in our lives and avoid driving each other crazy in lock down. Recently, I reminded Ben of the daily goals. He chose to see it as a multiple choice question, and responded with, “Hmmm, I think I’ll relax today!”
Yes, Ben excels at relaxing, which is why I was so surprised when he eagerly got to work vacuuming yesterday. I just asked him to vacuum downstairs, but he did the second floor too, and then said he would mop the kitchen. It was around this time that I became suspicious, so I listened carefully to his verbal ramblings.
“I sure am working hard. Boy, I’m getting hungry. Me too.”
(I must interject here to say that another one of Ben’s skills, right up there with relaxing, is his ability to say the same thing, several different ways, and to make it sound like it is coming from different sources.)
“How about a reward? Yes, I think so! That’s a great idea! I agree.”
(At this point, he was still talking to himself, but clearly, his innermost thoughts were intended to reach my ears.)
“I sure do love Qdoba! Great reward for all my hard work! Carry-out lunch, regular dinner – we’ll do both! It’s perfect!”
While I really do not want him thinking that normal household chores deserve rewards, Qdoba actually did sound really good! Darn it if he didn’t talk me into it, and we got Qdoba for lunch. In our negotiations, I got him to stipulate that he understood that this was not a reward, and was not to be expected as payment any time he pitched in. He secured an agreement from me that a Thursday carry-out lunch did not cancel Friday’s traditional weekend treat. All parties walked away from the table satisfied!
