Commuter Mom: Allowance

I was at the store with Commuter Girl the other day when she pointed to a stuffed animal and said she needed it. I told her no, and asked her if she had any money to buy it. She looked at me and said, “Mama, I need some cash.” She’s 2 ½! We were out running errands and I told her that one of our stops was the bank. We drove through the ATM (by the way, whoever thought of drive through ATMs is a genius) and she asked if we were at the piggy bank.

I want Commuter Girl to understand that we work hard to earn our money and that she can’t have everything she wants. I want her to realize that sometimes you have to wait and save money before you can buy something really special. She can’t just walk into Gymboree and buy the sunglasses she wants, or the kayak she was eyeing at LL Bean – ok, maybe that involved a little encouragement from Commuter Dad. So, when can I start her on an allowance? How do I start to educate my 2 ½ year old about finances?

Commuter Mom: Peer Pressure

I am beside myself. My sweet cuddly little girl is turning into a bully. Last week she kicked another child off of the climber. Yesterday I came home and found out she was hitting her friends at school. Her teachers wouldn’t tell us who it was, but of course Commuter Girl told us within 30 seconds…it was one of her best friends! At least twice a week her teacher is telling us that she has had to be removed from activities for misbehaving. At home, we try to talk about why hitting and kicking are wrong; we talk about using words and not hands. But, does a 2 ½-year-old really understand that?

I’m sure this is all common toddler behavior, but I just don’t know how to handle it. Her teachers have asked us how we address the hitting at home. We don’t. She doesn’t hit at home. Am I just making excuses by assuming that some of this is due to the influence of the other children at school? She wasn’t afraid of “monsters” until a few of the other children started talking about it in her class. Would she be misbehaving as much if I stayed home with her rather than going to work?!? Is she just bored?!

CommuterMom: 3 Strikes and You’re Out

I took CommuterGirl to Barnes and Noble last weekend. She loves to play with the trains in the children’s section. Once she tires of the trains we spend a lot of time looking at books. I decided it was a good day for a special treat — both for Mommy and CommuterGirl, so we went to the Starbucks Café in the bookstore.

We got in line and CommuterGirl immediately spotted the case with juice and asked for apple juice. The line was moving slowly, but she was being pretty good so far…then it happened. CommuterGirl started running around the tables. Next thing you know, I’m balancing her apple juice and my wallet in one hand and trying to keep her from running into people with the other. I got her to stop long enough to tell her that she had two more chances to be a good girl and stand in line with Mommy or we were going to put her apple juice away and go home. Then she had one more chance. It didn’t take long before her chances were up and we had to put the juice away and go home. Needless to say, CommuterGirl was not happy and cried for apple juice the entire ride home.

Is it wrong that I was proud of myself? I didn’t give in. I gave her a warning and backed it up. Can someone tell that to the people who saw me leaving the bookstore with a screaming child?!?!