Friday, March 10, 2006

How I Got My Daughter To Make Her Bed

I have been trying to get my girl to make her bed in the morning but without success. It doesn't matter that she is only 4+ years old, I know she is capable of doing it. If she only had 1 pillow and 1 blanket I wouldn't mind so much. But she loves to surround herself with countless pillows and has 3 blankets. (Why she needs 3 blankets in this Malaysian climate I don't know.) So you just imagine the mess her bed is in. Oh, and not forgetting her resident soft toys too.
Well, as we were fooling around on the bed this evening, I decided to try the magic of storytelling. This is how it went:

Once upon a time, there was a little girl who got a new bed from her parents. It was a beautiful bed and so very comfy. She loved it. Her mother gave her one pillow but that wasn't enough. She asked if she could have a few more and have mother said ok. She was given one blanket but she wanted more. Again her mother said ok. That night, the little girl slept very well with her soft toys, pillows and blanket.
The next morning, the girl woke up bright and cheery. She didn't cry. (My girl is not a morning person). She jumped out of bed and left her it in a mess. Well, guess who came? It was Mr. Cockroach. He just moved into the house and was looking for a good place to stay. He was searching and searching when suddenly... AHA! "I found it" he said. He saw the mess the little girl had left on the bed and decided it was a good place to stay.
Then guess who came along? It was Mr. Rat. He was looking for a place to rest. He looked and looked and he saw the little girl's messy bed. "Oooh, that looks like a good place to rest" said Mr. Rat.
Then guess who else came along? It was Mr. Centipede. He wondered "where can I find a messy place to hide?" He too saw the little girl's messy bed and decided that was where he wanted to be.

The next thing my girl said was "Mommy, can you help me fold my blanket? I can't do it myself. I take this side and you take that side and we fold it ok?"
Hahahahaha. Beats all my reminders and coaxing. Magic of stories! Unfortunately it had some side effects. As she was straightening up her bed, she was afraid to find cockroaches, rats or centipedes. Oh well, most medicines are bitter.

9 comments:

  1. This is BRILLIANT!!!!!!!!! I have started young. My 22 month old and I make her bed together every morning. I put the big blankets on and then she collects the pillows and puts them on and then put the little blankets and stuffed animals on the bed where she'd like them to be positioned. It doesn't always look so pretty, but it doesn't have to. We have a good time doing it together and I am always certain to tell her how proud I am of her.

    I've just begun my own blog about parenting. You should come and visit it! I really enjoy yours and will be returning!

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  2. hahahaah.. that's so clever of you!

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  3. My helper is away for a few days, so I've gotten the kids involved in making their beds. I borrowed your method with Adam. Adam asked why he had to make his own bed, so I asked him if he wanted cockroaches and rats to live in the mess. Hehehe... Laura enjoys making her own bed 'coz we fold her blanket together and also it's something she does with me.

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  4. wah! this is freaking marvelous! will definitely take note of this super-technique to get my son to do anything I want... LOL!

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  5. Mom2ashley,Min, Egghead:
    We parents have to sometimes get real creative to get what we want in a non-confrontational way. Hahaha. Subtle hinting is worth a try.

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  6. Real cool. Must remember this story. I'm sure it will work with my boys too..

    If not I'll have to count 1, 2, 3! LOL!

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  7. great blog-

    first time visiting from the link on opinionated parenting

    looking forward to reading more...

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  8. Geetha,
    Should ask your DH to create one. It would be interesting to see what he can cook up this time.

    Jess:
    Thanks for stopping by. Looking forward to your return.

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  9. Hehehe u r one talented story teller!

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