It really does take a village to raise a child.

I have to share with you an experiment I am trying tonight. Earlier today my neighbor posted on her Facebook page that her young son does not like her rules so he wants a new family. I had to laugh because as a child I remember saying the same thing to my mother before packing a plastic garbage bag full of clothes then dragging it down the street. Laughing from the window,my mother just watched me go... leaving a trail of clothes behind me. This made it easy for her to find me when she had calmed down enough that she would not laugh in my face.

After calming my own laughter, I made an offer to my neighbor that I would take him in. The contingency was that he would have to earn his keep by doing all the yummy chores in my house that no one else wants. She took me up on the offer.

At about 8:30 she showed up at my house with her son. To his surprise I had dirty toilets waiting for him to earn a bed to sleep in. After he gladly cleaned the toilets, I made him read a book to me. When I asked him to go potty before getting in bed he refused. With a sweet smile I let him know he had two choices. He could go potty before climbing in bed or he could sleep in the tub. Then I left the room to go tuck my girls in bed while he thought about it for a minute. When I returned he let me know he decided to go potty. He is now fast asleep in his bed.

We'll see how long he lasts tomorrow when I wake everyone up military style and do chores to earn their breakfast. I'll let you know how it goes.