Foundations ..

Every now and then, I realise that Clara is ruling me a bit, I get dragged down and get really upset that I can't control her. Then I find strength and completely knuckle down on her. Friends say that I'm too hard on her, but I definitely reap the rewards as Clara, generally is an amazingly well behaved little lady.

We're battling with her tidying at the moment. She will not tidy her room. No matter how nicely we ask, we can sit in her room with her and help her but it doesn't make a difference. I've confiscated toys but then given them to her as I feel sorry for her, believeing that she must be absolutely bored with having nothing to play with.

We re-arranged the living room to give the girls more of a play area than just a few toys in the corner. I asked Clara to tidy her room and she very stubbornly shouted 'No, I will NOT' .. so, I removed every single toy. And her princess bedding. That upset her the most.

This is where the blocks come in. She is responsible for keeping the downstairs play area tidy, she only has to do this once a day before bathtime. If it's tidy, she receives a block. 3 blocks means that she gets one of her toys back. It seems to be working as the play area is tidy .. and she's got 1 of her toys back already. And I'm not giving in at all.

Now .. to try to fix the little ones violent lashing out at everyone - although, I did notice 3 new teeth so I wonder if that's what's been annoying her lately. Poor baby x