ECHOage online birthday party

This year for my son's birthday instead of getting a bunch of toys that he really doesn't need, I decided to "ECHOage" his party. For those of you who don't know what that is, the website explains that "ECHOage is a charity-driven, eco-friendly, online birthday party service where children learn the value of giving and receiving while celebrating." Basically, your guests make an online donation and half of the money goes to the charity of your choice and the other half goes to your child. Even though my son is only 4 and really had no choice in the matter, we're still proud of the fact that he didn't object and wanted to reward him for his compassion and generosity. So with the money we received we decided to splurge and get him one really big gift. After failing to convince him that he needs a new pair of Tory Burch shoes in a ladies size 7, we settled on the Leapster 2 and a few cartridge games to go with it.

Before I became a mom, I swore I would never buy my child any kind of video game device. I thought that it would make him anti-social and have an affinity for wearing long trench coats. But since becoming a mother and experiencing first hand how demanding it is, I've become more than okay with Jack having some "independent" play time every now and then. The Leapster 2 has proven to be a great solution not only because it's educational (it teaches math, numbers, letters and hand eye coordination), but it has now become that toy in our house that I can use as leverage.

The other night, we had one of those marathon evenings where my son was so overtired but refused to go to sleep. My husband and I tried everything short of duct tape to get him to stay in his bed. But our 37 inch tyrant refused to give in. Much like how I felt about the last season of Lost, I was desperate to see this drama end. So I calmly walked over to where the Leapster sat on the counter, picked it up and threw it in the garbage. The look on my son's face resembled Edvard Munch's painting "The Scream" and it was at that moment that the tides turned in my favour. He marched his sobbing self up the stairs and fell asleep within 1 minute.

Now I'm not particularly proud of this moment and I don't like the fact that my son went to bed upset. But when it's 2 hours past his bedtime and my buttons have been pushed more than a teenage girl's smart phone keypad, I believe you have to take control of the situation and show your children that you mean business.

We're all human and there are going to be days when you make mistakes. Instead of berating yourself and spending your time feeling guilty about the situation, use it as a learning experience. If you're finding that you've been less patient and more emotional lately, check in with yourself and find out why. Are you getting enough sleep? Do you have enough time to unwind and do things that are just for you? Is there too much on your plate? Once you've figured out what's bothering you, make a point to do something about it. Find an objective, non-judgmental person to talk to and ask for help where you need it.

The next morning my son came into my room and gave me a big hug. I knew that was his way of apologizing and that there was no lasting damage to our relationship. We talked about what happened and I decided to give him back his Leapster (which I quickly took out of the garbage once he was in bed). Not so much for his use but because my math sucks and I could use Dora's help with addition and subtraction.