Friday, February 01, 2008
We who have been defeated wish you well .....
It's been a long fight and an uphill battle at times. We gave it our all ... but sometimes your all just isn't good enough. Samantha's cell phone arrived yesterday. This concludes almost 18 months of begging, pleading, temper tantrums ... and that doesn't even take into account Sam's attitude.
This was clearly a peer pressure thing .... Sam is not big on sitting on the phone. Just about everyone in her class has them and she was feeling left out. The problem she wasn't getting .... it's not like a Christmas present ... it's the gift that keeps on giving in the form of monthly charges.
We finally came down to an arrangement where she would start doing some chores around the house. These were not busy work chores. The chores she came up with actually had to make a difference to Lisa and my household work load. Things like unloading the dishwasher and taking the trash out to the curb for example. We were able to negotiate a list of chores that Lee and I thought were adequate compensation for the phone bill. I drew up a simple contract and we all signed it. If she doesn't follow through on the chores or her grades slip ... bye-bye cell phone.
Knowing our daughter, and her lack of follow through, we hedged our bets and set her up with a prepaid refillable phone rather than getting locked into a 2 year contract. A few months down the road if it seems like it's working out will convert her to a regular plan.
So, to all those parents out there that haven't yet caved in please forgive us for giving up the fight. We wish you well in your challenges!!!
#posted by Rob Roschewsk @ 4:01 PM