Piggy Bank

For the most part, Jeeper is good at recognizing boundaries. Sure, he negotiates daily and he pushes hard for what he wants when he wants it, but he isn't one of those kids who snatches the decorative items off your mother-in-law's coffee table and he knows to ask for a grown-up's hand before stepping into a parking lot. So he caught me off guard a few months back when he put coins into the CD-player in my car stereo.

He was "playing car" in my car in the garage -- sitting in the parked car (no keys anywhere near for those of you who are questioning my parenting skills) and pretending to drive it. We had gone over the rules a number of times before: no turning on the headlights, honking the horn or playing with the CD-player. Other than that, he could turn the radio dials, flip the windshield wiper lever up and down, push on the hazard light button and imagine he was speeding down the road all he wanted.

As you can imagine, the coins in the CD drive have rendered that part of the stereo inoperable. And neither my husband nor the dealer can get the coins out. Which means that I'll have to replace the stereo system if I want to play CDs ever again. And although I've thought about tapping some of the funds in JP's "Savings" or "Taxes" accounts, for now, I'm opting to rely on the radio. And I must admit I'm enjoying the one small perk of JP's coin adventure -- no children's music! Since all of his music was on CDs, when he demands "kid music" I can calmly remind him that the CD player doesn't work. And when I ask him why, he remorsefully replies, "Because I put money in it." Well, son, how about some good old rock and roll instead?!