Badin vs. Fredericktown
Miamisburg graduation 2012
Valley View vs. Greenville
Home > Blogs > Adventures in Motherhood > Archives > 2009 > November > 20
Friday, November 20, 2009
Pulling the Santa card: Be good or else!
Afternoon preschool has been a challenge for my soon-to-be-4-year-old.
The 12:30 p.m. start cuts right into his natural naptime. He gets up at 8 a.m., eats breakfast, plays hard, eats lunch, then gets sleepy. I don’t blame him: My night-shift hours mean I’m generally ready for some shut-eye about that time too.
But four days a week, I pack him off to school and put off his rest period till 3:30. (There wasn’t a spot for him in the morning class, or this wouldn’t be an issue.)
Yes, he’s all hepped up with unspent energy when he comes home (even though they have an active-play program at his school), but he still needs his sleep. Believe me.
When he misses his nap, he is bossy and cranky all afternoon and basically unbearable by dinnertime. It’s like living with a little tyrant.
If he sleeps for a few hours, he wakes up in time for dinner his normal sweet/feisty self then heads off to bed for the night at the same time as his older siblings, about 9:30 p.m. His agreeable mood makes the household so much more pleasant to be a part of!
But Hubby is between jobs right now, and our circadian rhythm has been off-kilter because he wants to stay up and play with his daddy.
All this week, he’s been fighting tooth-and-nail to skip the nap. But I’m not biting. His actions tell me he still needs the extra rest, so I most often insist on it. (There are occasional days when family activities preclude his nap, but we’ve tried to wire our three kids for flexibility.)
And here’s the crux of this blog: Today I pulled the Santa card on him when he was throwing down, violently protesting my nap “suggestion.”
“Santa can see you, you know. And you just made it onto his ‘bad’ list.”
I felt guilty as soon as I uttered the words. But boy did those crocodile tears dry up in a hurry!
He was soon calm and apologizing for his tantrum, asking if he could somehow work his way back into Santa’s good graces.
“Of course!” I said with a reassuring smile as I snuggled into bed beside him and gave him a pat.
Another myth perpetuated. Ah, childhood innocence. It can sometimes be used to our advantage. ;)
I was relating this “mommy confession” to a co-worker, who said she had used the same technique on her 3-year-old daughter, who quit diapers cold turkey when told that Santa Claus only brings toys to big girls who are potty-trained.
It may have seemed a bit cruel and manipulative at the time, but she’s 11 now and hasn’t suffered any ill effects. In fact, that girl will probably pull the Santa card on her own child someday.
And the coal-for-Christmas scare tactic can be employed at any age.
On a recent trip back to my home state of West Virginia, I was actually on the hunt for a gag gift for a mom friend. She said her two teenagers had been naughty and she was threatening to give them lumps of coal for Christmas.
But alas, I couldn’t find what I was looking for: a set of praying hands sculpted out of coal. Wouldn’t those young ladies flip if they opened that box first!
Permalink | Comments (0) | Post your comment | Categories: Christmas, Funny stories, Helpful tips, Mommy confessions
