Dean and Axel just went to the store. We need toilet paper.
But this trip to the store is really a set-up, and it's totally possible they will come home without said toilet paper.
Axel is a perfect angel when I take him places. Anywhere. I can take him anywhere and he's excellent. Always! For Papa? Not so much. I have heard accounts from other's who've seen Axel and Dean together when I'm not around, and I hear he's a totally different child. You see, Axel is still in the testing phase with Dean, and is really pretty naughty Dean takes him somewhere, so today Dean is showing Axel exactly where the limits are. Today they will be running lots of totally unnecessary errands. The kind that don't matter if you come home without the stuff went in search of.
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They pulled out of the driveway and not 1 minute later they pulled back in, and Axel, who was laughing his naughty laugh, was brought into the house and deposited in "the spot" at the end of the hall. By the time he got to "the spot" he was no longer laughing and was now crying because he would really rather be in the car.
A couple minutes later Dean asked him, "Are you ready to try again?" and they got back in the car.
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They've just come back with the toilet paper and a few other things, but Axel was brought back to the house and deposited back in "the spot".
"He was GREAT in the store! But on the way out he started grabbing carts and shoving them, laughing the whole time. He did the flop-n-drop in the middle of the street, laughing, and I had to carry him to the car! Then he shoved the cart and ran the other way." Oh...Papa is not a happy papa at the moment!
After a couple minutes in "the spot", Dean asked him, "Are you ready to try again?" They have now headed to a different store to give this whole behaving in public thing another go. Kudos to Dean for sticking with it, and making a day of helping Axel understand that he has to behave for Papa too!
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Well, they made it back, and Axel was excellent in all FOUR stores they went to! He even came home with a chocolate encrusted mouth to prove it. ;-)
5 comments:
Good for Dean for sticking it out.
Awesome. That's exactly how to train a child to listen and obey--consistency in words and actions/consequences. Not too different from training a dog--just sayin'.
Good for you guys! Thats great.
Be blessed
Ashlee
Good idea Dean. Glad you had the perserverance to carry it out. Now next time I hope it works and Axel remembers that there is a punishment if he misbehaves. I don't think many dads would do this.
What a tough lesson. Great job to Dean for going again and again to teach this vaulable lesson and great job to Axel for learning it so well!
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