Hearing My Own Voice

My oldest is 3 years old, and I am already hearing my voice come back to haunt me. Isn't this supposed to happen later?

We have started a new program with K to help him remember to mind us and behave as well as teach him about money. We have a couple of rolls of pennies and everytime he says thank you, does what he is supposed to do, says okay, etc. he gets to put a penny in a jar. However, on the opposite side, if he whines, throws a fit, etc. Mommy takes a penny away. After supper he gets to take whatever amount is in the jar and "buy" a treat. This could be a candy, little toy, or a few minutes of extra time of Sprout TV. He is terribly excited about this and frankly so am I. I am hoping that this will be enough of a motivator that the whining will stop!

We started this on Monday. Seeing as it was the beginning of my little experiment, I knew that there would be somewhat of a learning curve. We got off to a rough start. He earned several coins, then the whining began. So we went and took a penny out of the jar. He wasn't happy about this, but seemed to understand. We went for a little longer and had some good times, but yet again, he began to whine. This time, when I took him to the jar to take out a penny, he looked up at me and said, "You're killing me, Mom." How do you keep a straight face when that happens? Here I am, trying to be stern and he says that! I heard myself when he said that. How many times have I said those words when he is trying my patience? Oy, my words are already coming back to haunt me! It's too soon!!