Backfire

Last fall we had a parenting series in our ABF where I learned, what I thought, was a fabulous discipline technique.  One guest speaker mom suggested using lemon juice/vinegar as a punishment for saying yucky things with your mouth.  I really like the concept of "you said something yucky with your mouth, so now you must have something yucky in your mouth as a punishment."  Around that time we had a problem with Aria spitting when she didn't like an instruction we gave her.  After hearing about that technique, I applied it the next time Aria spit.  I grabbed lime juice because it was the first thing I saw that I thought Aria wouldn't like.  It worked like a charm.  I think I only had to do the lime juice punishment twice to cure her spitting habit. 

Recently, Aria has developed another sassy behavior.  When she doesn't like an instruction we give, she deliberately does not obey and says, "huh" in a not very nice tone.  I decided it was time for the lime juice correction. 

Today Aria made the noise after I asked her to stop whining and ask nicely for whatever it was she wanted.  So I got out the lime juice and gave her a spoonful.  She promptly spit it out so I gave her another one.  She was trying so hard not to swallow it, yet hated having it in her mouth, and didn't want to spit it out.  The result?  She barfed.  It was so gross. 

I immediately switched to caring and concerned parent mode because it really freaked her out.  Aria hasn't thrown up much in her life that she can remember.  The only episodes we had was right around her one year birthday when we were trying to switch to regular milk.  Anyway, I got her all cleaned up and cleaned up the floor and then talked to her again about using her mouth to say nice things.

For the rest of the evening I've been evaluating whether or not the lime juice is a good discipline tool.  It certainly is effective and I like the idea of the punishment relating so closely to the poor behavior, but I don't know if I'll be dealing with vomit every time I do it.  Aria does gag easily.  One time, as an infant, she was crying so hard in the MOPS nursery she threw up on a volunteer.  Tonight I think she was trying so hard not to swallow it, it made her gag and throw up.  However, it could totally cure her sassy "huh" noise since she had such a bad experience with the lime juice this time.  Or I might have to find another yucky liquid to try. 

Parenting.  Always learning.  Always growing.