He came downstairs a few minutes later and bee lined to the laptop. Uh no, sweetie, the laptop is off. Then it's the TV, can I watch a show? Nope, we don't watch TV on school mornings. The whining floodgates opened. I cannot stand whining, especially that early and after being up with him in the wee hours of the morning. So he got an earful from me. I told him that I understand he's tired, I'm tired too, but he is not to talk to me like that and that he needs to go back up to his room and start his day over! Yes, I sent him to his room and it was barely 7 am. He grumped upstairs and came back down about 5 minutes later in a much better mood. Still not perky by any stretch of the imagination but not Grumpy either.
I got to work this morning after dropping both boys off at school, the bigger being grumpy with a little g, and Rene offered a suggestion. He'd observed our little exchange today and suggested I let Paulo watch TV while I'm making breakfast with the stipulation that it only be during that breakfast prep time and as soon as the food hits the table the TV goes off. I looked at him like he'd grown an extra head. He tried to rationalize it by saying that maybe for Paulo cartoons are like his coffee and how grumpy would we be without our morning coffee? Again, extra head. I mean really? Cartoons are neccesary for getting the day started? I do not agree! And what is five minutes going to give us? Stress and fighting when it's time to turn off the TV! It'd be like a teaser, it actually seems cruel to do to him! I can just hear it now.....
Here honey have five minutes of Little Bill, just long enough to get into it but not long enough to know how the story ends, and now kabam! Time to turn it off! Go to the table! What do you mean you don't want to turn it off? Well of course you don't!
Then the whining dam would burst and the whole town downstream would be flooded out! No thanks. I'll pass. I'll stick with my big blue meanie routine of no TV before school.
You could keep shows that come in little segments (Little Bear is a good one) and make crystal clear that tv in the am on school mornings is just while you are making breakfast or whatever. When it is time to sit down, the tv goes off. It works pretty well here if I spell it out. Looney Toons are also another idea. Or have him do art for his teacher. A little compromise is not a bad idea if it works well for all parties. But you have to go w/ what works for you, you know? We do cartoons after breakfast b/c we usually have 10-15 minutes after bfast before we leave. Mornings are rough no matter how you cut it. Do whatever it takes to make them as stress free as possible!
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