October Family Party

Now anyone dealing with a 3 y/o and 2 y/o knows how delightful their behaviour can sometimes be, and how hard it is to refrain from screaming like a banshee when they are at their most delightful.

We've got a little creative around here and rewarding good behaviour with buttons. I have a little jar, and when the kids are extra nice/kind/gentle they get to choose a button to put in. Of course, if they are being little brats, buttons can come out too. I've tried to build the allure of the buttons up, not offering them willy-nilly, but waiting for extra well-behaved moments.

When I first introduced the button jar to the kids, I asked them what special thing could happen when the jar was full. Grace piped up with a fantastic suggestion of a family party, so for the last few weeks the 2 little kidlets have been gaining and loosing buttons, with the jar finally filling up late Tuesday afternoon. Grace, being the little observant minx that she is, was straight into nagging for the party NOW. Well, being that it was 5pm, I thought this might work in my lazy favour and suggested that we combine the family party with dinner out. She jumped at the idea, so after consulting all my facebook friends for suggestions, we headed to the kid friendly Pacific Pines tavern.

The kids were both so excited as they babbled in the car about their "family party" and going out for dinner, restaurants are a real hit with my 2 foodies.

I thought that the playground would be a big draw card, but both kids were happy to sit at the table sipping their iced water and waiting for their order to arrive. They had both chosen chicken tenders with chips and salad, which was a huge serving and devoured eagerly by them both.

~~Is that ALL mine???~~

After dinner, where they both behaved beautifully, it was time for dessert. Grace wanted ice-cream with chocolate topping and sprinkles, and her little following wanted exactly the same.

The kids then had a run around the playground, whilst Mummy made a $10 contribution to the tavern via the slots.

So now it's time to start the jar again, and Grace is adamant that a restaurant trip will be the prize at the end again.