The Reward

 I think I've mentioned in a previous post that we made a "sticker chart" for Bridget when she wasn't staying in her bed at night.  When she stayed in her bed all night (we allowed one potty trip each night), she got a princess sticker the next morning.  We were secretly planning a trip to Disneyland anyway, but her goal was to fill up the chart (about three months worth) and go to the "Princess Castle."

Well.  Recently dinner time has been a time for whining (instead of eating), complaining (instead of eating), crying (instead of eating), dramatic displays of dissatisfaction (instead of eating).  Booooo.  When Bridget stopped taking naps (more than a year ago, I think) she began getting very tired at about 5:00 pm.  By the time we eat (usually 6:00 pm) she is almost insane with the sleepiness.  This is no good for many reasons - the main one being that Bridget ends up not eating anything for dinner.  We made a new sticker chart, the title of which is "Bridget Eats Her Dinner and Doesn't Complain."  (She calls it "beplaining."  Sometimes she tells me that she didn't "beplain.")  The reward was a new princess dress of Bridget's choice.  She changed her mind several times a day on the dress she wanted, but that was all part of the anticipation.

The chart was finally full last week and we ordered a Tinkerbell costume.  I'm sooooooooooooo glad this kind of thing works for Bridget.  She has learned to control her tantrums (there were a few nights when she didn't get a sticker, but only a few) and she eats whatever we're having for dinner.  Sometimes that is fish.  COME ON!  A kid who eats fish?  Awesome. :)