I have tried everything I can think of and Payton will not leave the TV or the dishwasher alone. These are the only two things he's being so stubborn about. He will even look at the dishwasher and/or TV, look at me and mess with it anyways, and then he'll put himself in timeout, point to the timer and say 'beep' (he knows he has to sit there until the beep)!! Usually with stuff like this it takes a couple weeks of consistent discipline/correction and he's over it, for the most part, but he is being so stubborn with these two things.

Any thoughts? The next time dh is home we are contemplating just simply unplugging the tv and rolling it away the next time he touches it, putting it away for a few days. We are seriously stumped here. :(

I would say go ahead and put the TV away. If Payton liked to watch it, maybe that will make an impression on him.

As for the dishwasher, maybe you could find a lock for it?

Since he is putting himself in time out, it sounds like the consequence for the behavior isn't really having the impact you need it to for these two things. You might have to come up with something different, like putting the tv away as you mentioned. Man, they are stubborn little people some days, huh?

that is so weird - Shaelyn like the dishwasher too! I get out a rubber spatula and give her a little swat on the hand if she touches the dishwasher when it's open. As for the TV - does he have is own little 'play' remote? Maybe that would help keep him from trying to touch the buttons? hope you find something soon!

Gezz, Jessy they can be stubborn :(
I wouldn't put the TV away seeing you can't move the dishwasher why move the TV. I can tell you my kiddos grew up with knick knacks around the house & people were like your gonna have to pick them up. NOPE! I WILL NOT, THEY WILL LEARN NOT TO TOUCH :mrgreen:
What I did was give them something nasty to eat, lol at least what I thought was nasty...PRUNES [whatwacko] seemed to work!
Be praying you figure the situation out [praying]

Well, I'm glad to hear I'm not alone! :) The problem is the dishwasher buttons and turning it on or hitting the buttons to change what kind of cycle, etc.

As far as the TV it would be more the losing a privilege. I have decorative things out that he has learned not to mess with so he KNOWS he's not supposed to touch but it's like he cannot resist, it's even worth the punishment, I've actually watched him work through this and decide it's worth it.

do you use the tv often? if so i wouldn't put it away...i would treat it as any other thing out that he isn't supposed to touch, just like those knick knacks
like kim said, find a new consequence...time-out ain't workin' girlfriend
mine would get a swat to the rear with a firm no AND a time-out...repeat as necessary

i just don't believe in putting things away because a child ought not touch them..i'd much rather train the child as to what is acceptable/permitted than to omit the 'temptation'

(yes i even have a christmas tree up AND glass ornaments well within my 18 month old's reach..I tell him 'no' a dozen times a day...but i think we got down to 8 times today hehe)

yep, i say it's time to up the ante on his consequences

I agree completely with the training them to not touch, we've done that all along, problem is time outs and spanks have worked for other things just not for these two things in particular. We've tried spanking, time outs, combine etc. for weeks. I feel like we've been consistent too. Maybe it's just taking longer for him to get it?! Maybe it's just worth these punishments to him?! That's why I'm trying to think of other ways to discipline perhaps. Maybe I just need to trudge along being consistent, it'll soak in later on?! I get tired and weary too (being preggo doesn't help) but I am so careful to be consistent.

As far as the TV goes we could get rid of it and it wouldn't hurt my feelings any. DH is all for it too. I mean, it's on quite a bit but most of the time it's muted and no one is actually watching it. It's mostly used for his videos/pbs shows, that's why I think it would be different taking it away. I've taken away toys that he's banged against windows and such and kept them for a few days, seems to have worked with them, kwim?

I appreciate the advice ladies, I really do. I know that just being consistent day to day is of utmost importance. I'm just thinking maybe there is something different I can try. *sigh*

Then go ahead and take the tv out. That's what I was trying to get at...if the rest of the family is ok (or better) with it out..that taking it out wouldn't be an issue for the fam as a whole..then go ahead. As it seems it could be the right consequence.

Just keep at it..spank a tad harder, time out a tad longer and quite possibly removal of the tv.

This sure is an 'interesting' age isn't it? :p

Man I am probably not going to be liked much around here but well this is what I did. Yes we disciplined and yes the kids, they learned not to touch so many things, even in our line of work there is a lot of no touching, and I used the lemon on the tongue for screaming things, time outs in their beds etc.

But things like this, really it was a chose your battles scenerio in my head. My one son was like Payton and what I did was cut a piece of cardboard out a certain size and tape it over the buttons. Yep I did, and sure they should learn not to touch and they did understand this concept clearly most of the time-- just some things were too tempting and if I was pregnant I didn't want to spend all day "no, don't touch" or disciplining I wanted to enjoy the time with my kids when I could.

Not saying anyone here doesn't love their kids, or their tactics aren't correct this is simply what I did to cope and make things work within the household. Eventually the cardboard came off and they just knew not to touch.

Haha, Renee, I so should take a picture, I have covered the button with cardboard, he figured out how to take it off!! Darn kids are too smart lol. :)

Oh really, ha, even duct tape???

Jessy, you could not allow him in the kitchen without you. My kids were only allowed where I was or in their bedrooms at that age. Not even allowed in the bathrooms or living room without me. Their rooms were safe, and anywhere I was. Otherwise, yeah, the temptation factor to get into things was just too high.

I guess if one of my kids was playing with the dishwasher while I was in there, and bottom swatting/hand slapping wasn't working well, I'd make the kidlet play on the other side of me, away from the dishwasher. Give 'em a boundary (don't cross this line...) and something else to play with, and if they try to disobey by walking toward the dishwasher, then it would be a spank and be removed from the room to their own bedroom. It shouldn't be too hard to keep a kid from touching something if you're right there and they aren't allowed near the 'thing'. You can make this about him obeying you and not about the dishwasher. Tell him where he can play, give him some things he can do, and if he disobeys, discipline him. I'm sure he has tons of things he can play with and touch. It's not like they're deprived if they can't play with our stuff, too. heehee! :lol:

For situations where you can't be there, I agree with Renee. Electrical outlets in their rooms would be one example. Childproof areas where you can't be all the time. But if you're there... you do outweigh him, so you win. [OKOK]

[lovesign]

Joy [welcomewave]

Nope, haven't tried duct tape lol. :)

Thanks, Joy! :) His room is completely safe, he plays in there and I am 100% confident there is nothing that can hurt him or that he can get into that he shouldn't, KWIM? I haven't thought about not allowing him in here with me. It'll be a task on my part, our living room/kitchen are connected and it'll take a close eye. He does understand the concept of rooms though as he knows he's not allowed to take a drink over into the living room but must keep it in the kitchen. I know he would not like that at all, I think I'll give it a go, see what happens. This is what I was looking for, something I haven't tried!

We used to have some friends that had a couple of active dogs. They taught the dogs not to cross over the threshhold from the kitchen into the living room. It was so funny because you could see these dogs just dancing in the kitchen, but their little dog toes didn't cross the line. So boundaries can be learned. :-D

I don't want to beat a dead horse, but I completely agree with Tara and Joy. Obviously the tv and the dishwasher have a fascination for your little guy, Jessy, but this is really an issue of obedience. I don't think I would remove the tv, though. It's a pretty stury item. I don't think I would let my child learn "no touch" lessons on my Bible or my laptop, but there are plenty of other opportunities to learn on less valuable items. One thing we also did was to allow a child to touch some things with one finger (as opposed to grabbing and pulling) and we always said, "Gentle" and I think maybe, "Soft". (It's been awhile so my memory can be hazy.)

I think sometimes it really IS worth it to disobey. Kids (and adults) just want their will so badly sometimes, that it's worth it to them to take the consequence. So, I agree with establishing the boundaries and making obedience the issue, but I also think that you might need to reevaluate the effectiveness of your consequences.

I'm with you, Jessy. I completely understand. [hug]

I haven't read all the replies but skimmed through and you have great advice, just wanted to add you could put a stop sign on your dishwasher & tv. SOme children need a visual cue?

I haven't read all the replies but skimmed through and you have great advice, just wanted to add you could put a stop sign on your dishwasher & tv. SOme children need a visual cue?

I was thinking of doing something like this then I thought I was crazy, Payton is a VERY visual little guy and in thinking about it more it might be a good idea.

Madre, thanks for the encouragement and thoughts. We decided not to remove the TV at least for now. We have talked about getting rid of it anyways due to the lack of use, etc. but we might do that in the future.

I did the piece of cardboard too Renee, that was with Lawson before I got craftier, lol. I was also pregnant and just simply tired of the constant battle and having to go back and forth to turn the tv off. Now with Azalia, she had the same temptation with the dishwasher.. just wouldn't leave it alone! Spankings don't work good for us at this age (Azalia is 15 months) because of the frequency she has to be disiplined before she understands. I can't spank her 10 times in a row.. it just seems too harsh to me. Instead I tell her "NO" firmly and take her to her bed. I tell her she didn't obey so has to go to bed. She seems to "get it". This worked to keep her away from the dogs water bowl too. That drove me nuts at first but she now just points to it and says "na" (her way of saying nasty, lol). I hope you figure out something that works for Payton.. moving the tv just seems like last resort, but if it works then so be it!:-D