He lit 350 matches

TerryJ2

Well-Known Member
I went out and bought a ton of matches and an aluminum bucket last weekend but we didn't get a chance to work with-difficult child until today. Originally husband and I were going to take turns, in case difficult child melted down, so one of us could be relieved of duty while the fresh parent came onboard, but at the last min, I ran errands while husband did it by himself. He's much better with-difficult child than I am ... a man's deep voice, more authoritative, all that.
Now husband insists that the child psychiatric only said 200 matches. I think he said 500. husband only made difficult child light 350. :(

But at least he stood there the entire time.

He said difficult child whined through the whole thing and tried to walk away about 4X. He coughed through the sulfur every time he lit one and really complained. husband is convinced that difficult child now hates matches and will not be playing with-them again.

I can only hope so!

He's been quite the Dennis The Menace lately. On top of breaking his window with-a baseball and lighting matches last wk, he's done a bunch of things, but the one I thought was a combination of the cleverest and the most passive/aggressive was his response to my telling him that he trashed my car. He had run off to play with-his friends instead of taking out his trash (McDonald's bag, etc.), backpack, and baseball bag, so I put it all in the middle of the driveway. The next time he ran into the house I told him he was not allowed to do anything until he cleaned it all up. He rushed back out and then back in and told me it was done.

Yesterday I found the red flag up on the mailbox, and knew I hadn't put any outgoing mail in there. I looked inside and found his McDonald's trash! :angry-very:
So now he has to write 100 X, "I am sorry I put my trash in the mailbox."
 

witzend

Well-Known Member
UGH! I hope that he will stop with the fire stuff, as well. How dangerous! He does sound like he is really pushing the envelope...
 

Wiped Out

Well-Known Member
Staff member
I hope he learned his lesson with the matches!! How frustrating about the trash in the mailbox.
 

KTMom91

Well-Known Member
Hope he got the matches message, as well as the no trash in the mailbox one...old-school creativity...I like it!
 

Andy

Active Member
That is so funny - how do these kids come up with these things? Atleast the flag was up so you knew something was in it. How long did it take you to stop laughing long enough to discipline? Or is these one of those, "You wouldn't think it was funny if you were the mom?"

Next time you find something like that in the mailbox, ask who it is being mailed to - tell difficult child that he needs to put an address on it with his return address and then figure out how much postage is needed. Suggest that it may be helpful to have it put in a box, we have to make life easy for our mailman. If he needs a ride to the postoffice to have his package weighed you will be glad to take him, just don't let him forget his wallet so he can purchase the postage. Be as helpful as you can to help him with this. He will be so confused why you are reacting that way.
 

klmno

Active Member
I think I might have laid it on his bed and told him the mailman just sent him a package.

Maybe that is why my kid has meltdowns!?...
 

totoro

Mom? What's a difficult child?
Hopefully he is "burnt" out!!! Ask him if he was trying to mail the mailman something or give the mailman a GIFT, for all of his hard WORK???

I do hope he is done with this match shenanigans...
 

Christy

New Member
Burnt out! Good one totoro! Hope the experience killed his fascination with matches. The mailbox thing is creative. It probably would have been just as quick to throw it in the garbage but that would have been complying with your request, can't have that!
 

gcvmom

Here we go again!
Very clever. I think I would also make him pick up 500 pieces of trash around the neighborhood or a local park... to go with the matches.
 

Shari

IsItFridayYet?
I'd be tempted to ask your mailman to stamp the trash with their handy little "undeliverable address" and "postage due" stamps. And maybe a little note about that law that vandalizing mailboxes is a felony...cause shoving it full of gargage is vandalism.
But I'm mean like that.
 

Star*

call 911........call 911
Atleast the flag was up so you knew something was in it. quote]
:laugh: EVERYONE is a commediane!!

You know - I wonder IF these "more interesting" punishments are beneficial to difficult child AND an un-unified husband? - Maybe you can't get on the same page because husband considers most of difficult child's punishments boring - and lacking in creativity -

He seemed to stick with the plan to watch difficult child light 350 matches. Maybe the next punishment will be watching difficult child hop 500 times on one foot in front of his dad while throwing toothpicks in a bucket and chanting ' I will not X any more."

Had to tell you I LOL'd at the title of your post when I read it - I thought WONDER WHO stood there while it was done. Glad to see you haven't moved out and stood your ground. Good job Mom!
 

hearts and roses

Mind Reader
I am curious to know if the match thing will work. We did something similar with difficult child when she was about 10 or so. She later went on to set the bathroom garbage of the girls' room on fire in Junior high, so...her nickname was "Torch" for a while. Maybe we didn't do it right.

Too bad about the trash in the mail box thing - he's being a bit of a mischief, isn't he?
 

TerryJ2

Well-Known Member
Maybe you can't get on the same page because husband considers most of difficult child's punishments boring - and lacking in creativity -

Wow. I'd never thought of that.


He seemed to stick with the plan to watch difficult child light 350 matches. Maybe the next punishment will be watching difficult child hop 500 times on one foot in front of his dad while throwing toothpicks in a bucket and chanting ' I will not X any more."

Yup. Or, I could just call him at work and tell him he has to come home immediately because I've hung difficult child by his ankles from the chandelier.

Had to tell you I LOL'd at the title of your post when I read it - I thought WONDER WHO stood there while it was done. Glad to see you haven't moved out and stood your ground. Good job Mom!

Thanks. {{Blush.}}

Jo, she set the bathroom garbage in the girls' bathroom on fire? Sheesh. It's been a few yrs ... I hope she's out of that stage.
 
Top