The other day, my 10-year-old daughter comes into our bedroom and asks, “Can I have a Poptart\u2122?”\nMy wife and I have the exact same response, though she said it first, “You can have one.”\nThis sends Megan into a fit. She wants two! Our thinking is this: Poptarts\u2122 come in packages of two, she’ll cook two, she’ll be full after eating one, the other will be wasted. Just as my wife starts yelling back at her to calm down and use her “Quiet Voice”, something unusual happens to me. I become calm and I know exactly what to say.\n“Megan, cook only one, and we’ll see how you feel afterword about the other one.”\nMegan calms down, says, “OK.”\nJust as she turns around I say, “And put the other Poptart\u2122 in a bag.”\nMentioning the bag after she agreed to eat only one was important. She already accepted the deal, so the bag didn’t affect her attitude.\nAnd this is why I’m eating the last tasty Poptart\u2122 in the house right now.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The other day, my 10-year-old daughter comes into our bedroom and asks, “Can I have a Poptart\u2122?” My wife and I have the exact same response, though she said it first, “You can have one.” This sends Megan into a … Continue reading