Let me start by saying this: Archer has been on time to school four
times in the two years he's been attending. Thankfully, Archer's school
has a thirty-minute window and also, thankfully, it's preschool so it
doesn't *really* matter. But Kindergarten is coming. I am very aware of
this because we're in apply-to-charter-and-magnet-school-mode, and
being late will not be tolerated come Fall 2010.
I
blame myself partially. I'm hopeless in the morning and can never quite
time the trip to school, especially as it ranges wildly. (Anywhere from
ten minutes to forty-five depending on tree-trimming, road-fixing,
show-shooting, and of course, cars-driving.) That being said, until two
weeks ago, it wasn't ALL my fault that we were late every day.
Archer
happens to suffer from
I-hate-to-get-dressed-in-the-morning-syndrome-especially-on-school-days
and has for the past several months.
In
order to try to fix this exasperating situation, we took away his
morning privileges. In the past he was able to watch one show (always
Little Einsteins, his favorite) before school as Hal and I were getting
the day prepared.
"Fine!" I said one morning as Archer kicked and screamed and refused his clothes. "No more Einsteins!"
He cried louder. Kicked harder. But that was that. We haven't watched TV in the morning since.
After
that, I started a "star chart" so that every morning he got dressed
without a fight, he got a star! (Every ten stars = cupcake or ice
cream. Every one hundred stars = any toy he wants in our favorite local
toy store.) At first the star chart was working brilliantly. Then, for
whatever reason, it lost its charm. The tantrums returned with a
vengeance. The refusal of getting dressed in the morning. The
twenty-minute battle. EVERY. DAY.
It wasn't until I had a panic attack in the middle of his worst tantrum ever that I decided to take serious action...
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