Lego Worthy

There's this kid we like to call Kate who lives in our house.

Sometimes we refer to her as Hurricane Kate and for good reason. Our Kate moves through her world and ours at a speed that is simply remarkable. In fact, I find myself remarking quite often...

"Kate, slow down."

"Kate, come back here and walk this time."

"Kate, your are runnnn...Come BACK HERE I WAS TALKING TO YOU!"

"Stop running, Kate...you are gonna get hurt!"

And on it goes. Kate rarely gets hurt as a result of her speed, she is rarely even aware of her speed, but still it does cause her to get into trouble every now and then.

We've learned that Kate moves so quickly because her mind is approximately seven steps ahead of her body and her sprightly little body is constantly trying to keep up! We've also come to the conclusion that the trail that is left behind Hurricane Kate is a direct result of this body/mind conundrum.

Who has time to rinse the post-toothbrushing sink when her brain is frantically planning her outfit for the day?...go, go, go!

She'd like to pick up her PJs, but she's just thought of a perfect game to play with Molly...hustle now!

She didn't mean to spill the sugar for her hot tea but she simply had to tell Megan about a secret plan she was crafting which would be the most wonderful after school adventure...quick, go whisper in Meg's ear!

And that trail of doll clothes from her room to her math papers? Honestly, she was just preparing to pack the doll's clothes for a trip in two weeks, when she remembered that she'd been summoned to school.

Whew! That's just her morning!

Whizbang through the day my gal flies expecting that we can all keep up...few of us ever succeed. The constant pleadings from her breathless parents to please, please, pretty please pick up after herself were not meeting with much success. We'd tried everything we could think of, taking her things, not letting her choose her own clothes (the horrors!), ignoring the problem (sometimes we just had to), begging, using guilt, more begging...until a funny thing happened...

Kate discovered that she rather enjoyed the challenge and the achievement of putting together Lego sets.

{I realize that Kate is blurry in this picture...see above for explanation!}

I remembered something I read years ago from a book entitled Creative Correction by Lisa Welchel and we've morphed it into a plan here at our house. My Man took Kate shopping for a Lego set and surprised her with not one set, but two. One set was to enjoy immediately and the other set, the one she was most excited about, was for her to earn, piece by piece.

We gave Kate a short list of things we needed her to practice regularly: keeping her clothes picked up and neatly folded in her dresser drawers, cleaning the sink after she brushed her teeth, and keeping her room in good order. If upon surprise inspection, her areas of responsibility are found in good shape, she would be awarded a Lego or two from her set. 

Kate's room has never looked better...consistently!

She's gotten the hang of looking after herself a bit better, and is owed Legos on a regular basis these days. Soon, she'll have that whole set and by then she'll have gained a lifelong habit (one hopes) of tidiness. 

Now when we ask our Tropical Storm Kate, "Is your room Lego worthy?" more often than not we are answered with a confident, "Yes sir!," or "Yes ma'am!" We rarely need to even remind her to pick up her things anymore and that absence of nagging, begging, and pleading has been...delightful!

Go Kate!

{oh, but not so FAST!!}