I really try not to raise my voice, but after I've told them to do something or to stop doing something 4-5 times...I will get "loud"
McDonalds - We've bought a few happy meals, but the only thing the kids like in them are the fries & toys. They generally don't like Micky D's food. They is a MD's with a "Playplace" right at the end of our street & they kids love going there to play. So, if we take them, they get a small fry & the yogurt/fruit cup thingy, because they'll eat it & usually milk to drink. But, we rarely ever go....maybe 4 times per year.
whining - heh....my wife & I have no tolerance for whining from our 5 & 7 year olds. If they whine, they go to their room or a seat until they're ready to talk about it, sans the whine.
Fries - see above
spoiling - it doesn't happen in our home. In fact, my wife & I rarely ever buys toys, even on birthdays & Christmas. They get too many from friends & family then & they're soon forgot, for the most part.. Every now & then, we'll give them a dollar or 2 to buy something at the dollar store or to save. They'll get a little toy that usually breaks or gets forgotten after a few days....what a waste.
Video games - I used to play EA Sports NHL series quite a bit & the kids loved playing with me. But I haven't had time for it. They closest they get now to video games are the games on noggin.com or another kids site. When they get older we'll see what happens. I'm not against video games in moderation, my wife is against them 100%. However, I think that as they get older, they'll pressure us more to get games....like I said, we'll see what happens.
TV - we let them watch 30-60 mins MAX per day, unless we watch a family movie. It's usually cartoons (ones that we allow)...they LOVE the Pink Panther :)
Computer - like I said in about video games, it's usually kids' websites that they go to. They also like to draw on MS Paint and love Celestia, a "space simulation that lets you explore our universe in three dimensions". I highly recommend Celestia for anyone who has kids interested in space...plus it's FREE.
I really try not to raise my
I really try not to raise my voice, but after I've told them to do something or to stop doing something 4-5 times...I will get "loud"
McDonalds - We've bought a few happy meals, but the only thing the kids like in them are the fries & toys. They generally don't like Micky D's food. They is a MD's with a "Playplace" right at the end of our street & they kids love going there to play. So, if we take them, they get a small fry & the yogurt/fruit cup thingy, because they'll eat it & usually milk to drink. But, we rarely ever go....maybe 4 times per year.
whining - heh....my wife & I have no tolerance for whining from our 5 & 7 year olds. If they whine, they go to their room or a seat until they're ready to talk about it, sans the whine.
Fries - see above
spoiling - it doesn't happen in our home. In fact, my wife & I rarely ever buys toys, even on birthdays & Christmas. They get too many from friends & family then & they're soon forgot, for the most part.. Every now & then, we'll give them a dollar or 2 to buy something at the dollar store or to save. They'll get a little toy that usually breaks or gets forgotten after a few days....what a waste.
Video games - I used to play EA Sports NHL series quite a bit & the kids loved playing with me. But I haven't had time for it. They closest they get now to video games are the games on noggin.com or another kids site. When they get older we'll see what happens. I'm not against video games in moderation, my wife is against them 100%. However, I think that as they get older, they'll pressure us more to get games....like I said, we'll see what happens.
TV - we let them watch 30-60 mins MAX per day, unless we watch a family movie. It's usually cartoons (ones that we allow)...they LOVE the Pink Panther :)
Computer - like I said in about video games, it's usually kids' websites that they go to. They also like to draw on MS Paint and love Celestia, a "space simulation that lets you explore our universe in three dimensions". I highly recommend Celestia for anyone who has kids interested in space...plus it's FREE.