After I posted my acknowledgement that I bribe my children, I had a revelation. First, I was corrected by my mother - stickler for definition that she is (which I love, by the way). It is incentive, rather than bribery, because the desired behavior is honest and what the boys should be doing anyway. So, that made me feel a little better.
My real revelation, however, was that - instead of sweets or treats - computer time was the ticket that actually worked. Gavin LOVES the computer. In the morning, when I'm writing here or checking email, he comes over and says sweetly, "Do you like PBS Kids?" or "How 'bout you try G -A- M- E- S Mickey Mouse?"
The other day I devised a new plan. Brilliant. He starts each day with 30 minutes of computer time. If he follows directions, listens, cleans up, and proceeds through the day without whining or freak outs, then he can earn more time (or keep the 30). If he doesn't behave as a polite little guy, then he loses minutes. So far it is working like a charm. He got himself dressed yesterday with no fuss whatsoever! And seemed quite proud of himself too. (Although, if he loses minutes, he says, "22 minutes is still a lot of minutes...".)
This hasn't caught on for Graeme, of course. He's usually sleeping when Gavin gets PBS Kids time. And, though Graeme loves to still say, "I promise No Freak Outs!", he's not always true to his word.
Actually, a preschool teacher accused me of "bribing" Celeste when she was Gavin's age and engrossed in play, and I was trying to entice her to go home. "Are you bribing that child?" she sharply said to my face. Well, I was embarassed and had no reply at the time, but later consoled myself with the same realization I shared with you.
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