Sometimes you gotta uglify something before you can pretty it up. I felt a little obnoxious about putting a nasty, tsk-tsk sign in our shared bathroom. But it was only there for a week.
The boys, they leave toothpaste blobs in the sink. It yucks me out, but while we're home it's just me that gets yucked out, so I feel petty to be constantly carping about this. In a few weeks, though, we'll be traveling. We'll stay at other people's houses. And in the past, some of them have gotten yucked out, just like I do. Nagging is ugly, too, and besides feeling petty, it's proved singularly ineffective. One problem is that nagging happens long after the fact, not at the moment of toothpaste yuck-ification. But a sign right at the place of the dreadful act? Would "pre-nagging" work?
The answer one week later: yes. We have a beautiful sink now. I took the ugly sign down. We're ready to travel.
Ooo! Congratulations!
ReplyDeleteOne of life's small victories . . . -MM
DeleteI wonder if that would work for my oldest...
ReplyDeleteWorth a try, right? Worst that can happen is that your kid thinks of you as a nit-picky tyrant (which wasn't far from my own kids' previous impressions of me). But now I get to stop nagging! - MM
DeleteClear instructions and expectations work wonders. Good job and have fun in your travels.
ReplyDeleteThat, and threats that maybe "how to properly hang a towel" might be the next sign on the wall. Thanks for the warm wishes! - MM
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