You Can't Always Get What You Want

No, you can't always get what you want. But if you try sometime, you just might find, you get what you need.

I've been hearing a lot of "I want" in our house over the last few months. And it drives me bonkers. "I want this toy [that I just saw an annoyingly loud and stimulating commercial for, even though I have no idea what it does or why I might want it]!" "We're at the dollar store, I want something [it doesn't matter what, I just want to leave the store with something I didn't have before, and then I'll forget it by the time we get home]" "Ohhh, that's my favorite chocolate bar, I want it soooo bad [ok, I don't know if I've ever really had *that* chocolate bar before, but it's at eye level and I need to ask beg for it now because the clerk is asking if you need bags and the baby is crying and you're frantically searching the diaper bag for your wallet]."

NO MORE! I'm putting my foot down. No more, 'just because we're in the dollar store' toys; no more 'please be quiet chocolate bars/gum/candy/any other form of edible bribery'; no more 'oh he'd love that' movie or game or book or toy. NO MORE!

And this goes for you too, grandparents. I'm setting some rules. There are occasions where a gift is totally a-ok, in my books - Christmas and Birthdays. The Easter Bunny will deliver a couple of Spring gifts, but you don't even have to worry yourselves about that... My kids don't need a gift on St Patrick's Day. They don't need a 10lbs bag of sweet tarts on Valentines Day. They don't need crap from the dollar store, EVER. They don't need cheap little "I was thinking about you" toys... if you're thinking about them, call them or visit them.

Anyways, I'm getting myself off topic... I really wanted to talk about kids EARNING the things they get. I totally think that my son is old enough now to learn that if he really wants something, he's got to work for it. We don't live in a world where just because you want something, you're going to get it. So he shouldn't grow up thinking that just because it's something he wants, all he needs to do is ask and BAM! it's in his sweaty little hands the next day.

Now I just need to put this plan into action... I need to get my crafty mama on and figure out an earning system. What chores do you think are good for a 4/5 year old? Any suggestions?