. good girl jars .

i first saw the idea of "good girl jars" on pinterest, here and here, and thought it was a great idea that i wanted to try to do with my girls.  my whole point of doing them was because i feel like i focus way too much on the negative things that my girls do instead of the positive.  always saying "no" instead of saying "great job!"  i'm not totally a horrible mother though.  i do let them know when they've made me happy or have actually listened, but it seems like the bad always outweighs the good.  and i don't want that to be the case.  at all.  so these were the perfect opportunity for me to focus on the positives.

this was a rather quick and easy project to do.  first, i gathered 6 small mason jars.  i only found them in a pack of 12 at walmart for like $8 or something like that.  the big jars i bought at michaels for $1.99 each.  all the fillings i found at hobby lobby.  yes, i was all over town that day, but i wanted to get it done. 

the point of this is that when they do one of these things, they get to get one of the fillings out and put it in their big jar.  so the orange top is for eating good.  inside is clear/white flower beads.  the green is for bedtime.  we struggle with bedtime every single night.  so if they stay in their bed and don't get up, they get a jingle bell.  the blue is for being kind to others.  they are blue pebbles.  those glass jar filler things.  pink is for picking up.  i make my children pick up their toys every night before bedtime.  if they do it without fussing, they get a pink pom pom.  that one applies to anytime all day long.  the yellow one is for doing other good things.  mainly listening.  and that one is a yellow pom pom.  the purple is for washing hands.  i know, that's a weird one, but it's something we struggle with.  so if they remember to wash their hands, they get a little plastic coin thing.  i'm not sure what they are called.  you can obviously fill your jars with anything you want.  my focus was cheap.

each girl gets her own big jar to fill.  every time they do one thing, they get to pick one out of the little jar and put it in their big jar. 

the rewards were the hardest part for me.  instead of being specific, i just drew 3 lines, each numbered 1-3.  i'm going to try this and see if it works.  i didn't want to reward with food all 3 times, nor did i want to take my children to the store to buy a toy.  that's not my thing.  so i left them blank so i could decide each time what the reward was.  i could easily change them week to week if needed. 

this week, line 1 is ice cream with daddy.  so when they fill their jar to that line, that is their reward.

line 2 is a trip to the park.  i always want line 2 to be something fun, with physical activity involved.

line 3 is to make a special treat with mommy.  this may have to change.  i'm not real sure what another good "top reward" is, but my children love to bake and do crafts.  i'm thinking i'm going to create a basket to keep with "line 3 rewards" with cake mixes, icing, special craft projects, etc. 

the tops of the jars i just made in publisher, printed, cut, and glued to the top of the jars.  easy peasy.

and, so far, it's working!!