King for a Day

Our kids have been complaining lately that they get bossed around a lot. In general my answer to that has been "get used to it." But Katy had the brilliant idea of giving them certificates declaring them to be "Boss For One Day" for their birthday.

For that day - a weekend day of their choosing - they could make any and all decisions (*) regarding diet, clothing, activities, etc, for themselves, and that we would only step in if their physical well-being was at stake.

(*) within reason - Cameron immediately said "I want to go to Hawaii!" Me too, kid - sorry, no.

This weekend these certificates were cashed in.

Claire was The Boss on Saturday. Among her requests:

"I want to watch lots of Bugs Bunny cartoons!"
"For breakfast I want waffles, pancakes, sausage, and bacon!"
"I want ice cream for lunch!"
"I want to go for a bicycle ride to the park!"

Cameron was The Boss on Sunday. Among his requests:

"I want ice cream for breakfast! And a big carrot, half a grapefruit, and some cinnamon raisin toast."
"I want to go to Disneyland." (Less extravagent than you might think thanks to our annual passes.)
"I want to ...ride Autopia ...have a churro ...ride the big Ferris wheel ...have some popcorn." (while at Disneyland)
"I want some ice cream!" (right before bed)
"I want my sister to have some ice cream!" (When he realized that she wasn't The Boss and couldn't ask for some for herself, he stepped in and made a Boss-level request)

All in all, it was a pretty easy thing to do, and they both loved it.