Monday, April 26, 2010

The Plan

So today I finally sat down and developed a job list. There are certain jobs Daughter is expected to do as a member of the family: keep her bedroom clean, take care of her cat and one other chore, today's is taking out the trash. Then there is a list of other jobs that need to be done around the house. They are broken down by room and task, and there is a price attached to each. If she does the task properly the first time, she gets the full amount. If she has to redo it once, she gets 50% of it, and if it still isn't right, she doesn't get anything. She read over the list as we drove to see Psychiatrist, and thought it was good. When we got home and she looked again, she came and told me she was overwhelmed. I explained it again. She decided that tonight she's just going to do the daily tasks. She'll work on the jobs that earn her money the days she's home all day.
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Psychiatrist told Daughter she needs to decide if she wants to grow up or not. She also needs to dump Flasher. She told me that she doesn't think she's cycling, she thinks this is the developmental conflict. There is no medication for it. I asked if there was medication for the mom. She just smiled. She did think pulling her out of the workshop was good.
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We waited over an hour for Psychiatrist. They announced she had an emergency and we could reschedule, but it takes us an hour to get there, so I decided I'd rather wait. I seem to have picked up an intestinal bug someplace. I didn't get much sleep last night, and today has had its challenges, but I'm managing. Hopefully I will get a good night's sleep tonight and tomorrow will be a better day. This is a full week, so I need to be productive every day.

6 comments:

maeve said...

I love your chore plan and think I'll try to adopt it.

I'm petsitting for my friend's big dog. I've decided that pets are easier than kids/young adults. K. is in her room being sad because the latest boyfriend has "dumped" her. He thinks she's immature. Really?????????????

Jules said...

I keep meaning to ask you: what denomination is your church? (if you don't mind sharing that info) Just curious :)

Reverend Mom said...

Maeve,
Now's the time to adopt it-- before I tell you it didn't work. As to the boyfriend, that is the challenge-- the decent ones aren't going to stick around.

Jules,
I'm thinking about that. For now, I'll tell you this: I'm in an old mainline denomination. We don't have bishops or an appointment system, rather congregations form search committees and call pastors.

Adelaide Dupont said...

Best wishes about being productive every day within your limits.

What age would Daughter choose to be, if she could choose? What developmental expectations would she embrace?

Adelaide Dupont said...

And, also:

What are the consequences of her not growing up?

Reverend Mom said...

Adelaide,

Good questions. We'll have to talk about that. Thank you.