Out With the Beans & In With the MERMAIDS!!

We've had the bean jars for quite awhile now and they've lost their appeal. We completely forget about them and rarely add to them or draw on them anymore.

We moved on to milkshake motivation in hopes of getting them to eat their suppers. At breakfast time they eat like it's going out of style, lunch is usually a snap as well. But supper, oh my stars!!!!!!!! Lovey can go at least a week without eating any meat or vegetables. She was initially very interested in getting a milkshake. In order to get that, they had to eat seven suppers in a row. If they refused to eat one night, they started back at zero. She ate like we've never seen. One night she even ate salmon, practically her nemesis in the food department. I couldn't believe it! She'd never eaten it before so I wasn't confident that she'd be able to choke any down. However, I think she already had several nights in a row and was close enough to #7 to make it worth her while. Honey wasn't quite as keen and went back to zero. Sweetie of course was getting milkshakes almost every week although occasionally balked at something.

The first time Lovey got her milkshake, we made a big deal of it, really trying to build it up. We told her to call her grandparents and she excitedly explained the whole deal to Grammie & Grandad. After finding out Honey hadn't gotten her milkshake, they asked what happened and Lovey replied "the salmon got her". Honey made a comeback though and has since had a few, whereas Lovey only ever got one unfortunately. She'd requested a chocolate milkshake instead of Murray's specialty, the strawberry and it didn't turn out that well. She didn't seem to care if she ever got another one.

So, with the milkshake appeal gone for the one who is the worst eater and the two that usually eat well getting rewarded left right & centre, I decided it was time to change tactics!

But before I get to the new system, here's Sweetie with her new favourite snack. Apple? no! plum? nope. giant jellybean? nope. a tomato. She chooses this often for the fruit portion of the meal. She'll run to the fridge, grab one and sneak off to the bathroom to rinse it under the tap before we even know what she's up to. She gets a big kick out of eating them, especially if she thinks we're not going to let her. LOL The other day she asked me to pack one in her lunch! She's so happy eating them and I told her that from now on, when I'm doing her pictures I'm going to get her to hold a tomato. So when I was taking pictures of the Mermaid stuff, she grabbed another tomato from the fridge and jumped in front of the camera, ready for her shot! LOL

These are the new charts I made last night (for FIVE freakin' painful hours, ugh!). Honey's has scallop shells with Velcro tabs for each number and the little mermaid in the bottom corner has her face on it and will be moved to each new number. Her challenge is to remember to speak nicely and not be saucy to others, especially when her mother is asking her to do something.

Sweetie's chart has conch shells and her mermaid will also be moving along from number to number. Sweetie's challenge is to stop having crying freak out fits whenever something is bothering her, such as an itchy toe, a crooked sock etc.

Lovey's chart has sandollars for each number but they're too pale to see. After being up til 1am working on these, I was not too impressed when she looked at her mermaid and immediately tried to destroy the whole chart and then spent 45 minutes screaming/crying because she didn't like how I'd coloured the mermaid and wasn't happy with the mermaid's hairstyle. While Lovey's challenge could involve learning to use words instead of yelling/screaming/crying, we are saving that for the next round & are sticking with the supper thing. She must eat 30 meals that have meat & vegetables.

Want to see what they're playing for? :)))

Brand spanking new Barbie mini mermaids! I saw these while I was Christmas shopping and had a good feeling they'd have just the right appeal.


I picked them up yesterday and let them see them. It almost killed them not being able to open the box. Lovey tried several times to get her challenge changed to something else! They couldn't figure out WHY on earth they couldn't just have this present. The concept of earning a reward is slowly being grasped and a few times today when someone started to get lippy, all I had to do was look at them and whisper "mermaid!" and instantly they were angels again.

Everyone's mermaid got their first spot today so they're all on the board! The mermaid markers can also go backwards for misbehaviour too so there may be some back & forth in this race. It should be interesting to see how it goes. I put the toys up on a high shelf in the kitchen, still visible and a good reminder but just out of reach! I expect the race will be easier for some than others. Lovey had an awfully hard time tonight at supper. She'd been asking for meatballs for awhile so I chose tonight to have them so she'd be sure to get her first spot easily. Holy cow. I didn't think she was going to even get that. The minute I put her plate on the table I knew it was going to be trouble. The face went scrunchy and she sat back in her chair, clearly distancing herself from the food. What was the problem? Too much sauce on the meatballs, meatball. Yes that's right, ONE whole meatball. She eventually decided she'd work on the rice and wolfed that down no problem. After her ungrateful fit of hysterics this morning, I wasn't in much of a mood to cater to her at supper, especially after making this especially FOR her! Murray tried explaining this to her and all she'd say was that the meat was too saucy. He told her to scrape it off and try it. So she did that but the meat still sat there. Everyone had finished their meal, p their fruit and were onto dessert by this time and she's still staring at the meat. I gave up and told her to bring her plate & scrape it and move on. I was slightly encouraged when she didn't want to quit and decided to hang on to the plate. I finished my dessert and did my best to ignore her. Murray helped her scrape the sauce off but she still wouldn't try a bite. He was getting frustrated as well and asked why she wasn't eating...... get ready...... "not enough sauce" Meanwhile, there is still sauce alllllllllll over the freakin' plate! She's obviously just messing with us, trying to see how many hoops we'll jump through for her and I'd been through my last one much earlier today. I left the kitchen and started getting ready to go for a walk. Then I felt guilty. I realllllllllly wanted her to get off to a good start, I desperately want her to eat well and be able to enjoy dinner time with her family. Being nagged and leaving the table hungry night after night can't be much fun! I went back to the kitchen and started to heat up her plate. She has managed to get a little bit down but has 3 pieces of the meatball (which started out the size of a large marble) left to go. Who likes cold hamburger and congealed gravy???? Lovey! that's who! she starts hollering NOOOOOOO! as she sees her plate go in the microwave. I tell her it will taste better if it's not cold. Nope. no dice. Ok, I'm now officially done with the dinner drama that's now heading into its second hour of play. Adios. I leave the three little bites on her plate and go for a walk with Honey outside for awhile. When I get back, Lovey meets me in the entryway to tell me she finished. It took an hour and a half but she has consumed all her rice, one meatball and 5 peas. How sad is it that I'm thrilled and excited for her? This shouldn't be such a big deal but I'm willing to make it one if it helps encourage her to keep trying. That girl is so strong willed that ANY concession feels like a huge step! She can't possibly hate EVERY single meal we eat. Of course there would be some that she might not care for but unless it's chicken fingers, or pb&j, she says she hates it.

The other night I was tucking her in and lamenting another uneaten supper (there have been sooooo many days that she doesn't get anything to eat from lunchtime til breakfast the next day, except a bit of fruit at supper) and she asked me "How come you & Daddy like everything????" I found this idea so odd! It never occurred to me that she believed you have to like everything you eat. Slightly amused, I leaned over and asked if she wanted to know a secret. Immediately she was very interested. I whispered "I don't really like carrots". It was quite dark in her room but I could tell that her eyes got wide with shock. "you DON'T????" she asked. I confirmed that I didn't. Then I offered to tell her another secret & again she was all ears. "I don't like salmon very much." She almost gasped as she asked "Does DADDY know?!?!??!" I told her I wasn't sure if he did or not but that I eat these things that I don't love because they're good for me etc. It was quite a mindblowing revelation to her! LOL

Stay tuned & wish our little mermaids luck on their journeys. It's not going to be an easy road! If you're talking to any of them, be sure to ask how they're doing with their chart, the more hype the better!!!!!!!