The other day Zoya was practicing walking and she was walking toward me for a cracker. The dog (Mya) jumped up tried to get the cracker and knocked Zoya down pretty hard. I picked Mya up and yelled at her and put her in the bathroom and closed the door for a doggy time out. Zoya scooted over to the bathroom door and signed "dog" and looked at me like what the heck mom (putting Mya in the bathroom is not a usual occurrence but I was so mad she had knocked Zoya over). I told Zoya that Mya was in time out. Zoya looked up at me and signed "sorry" (when Zoya is in time out she has to sign sorry before she gets out). She was apologizing for the dog!! I felt so bad that I let Mya out right away! Zoya had no hard feelings that Mya had knocked her down apparently! Too cute!
By the way, people ask me if I really think Zoya understands time out. I can say without a doubt YES. She hates going there and the threat of time out immediately changes her behavior to a good choice. Now all I have to do is look at her with "that look" when shes doing something wrong and she signs "time out" and points to her chair and most of the time immediately changes the behavior (sometimes I have to count to three)! Sometimes she signs time out and points to the chair when she is simply thinking about making a bad choice....it is way too funny! For example, she might scoot over to the dog's water and think about touching it and then look at us and sign "time out" and point (and then she doesn't touch it). The trips to time out are getting less and less so that is also how I know it is working. She might go to time out 3 times a week on average (when we started she used to have to sit in time out 3-5 times A DAY). Oh and the other day she crawled over and sat in her time out chair all by herself. I said, "what did you do? why did you put yourself in time out?" She started crying and got the saddest look on her face. She was about to lose it...so I said, "nobody put you in time out, you put yourself there, you can get out...come on stand up" and she stood up and then kinda laughed when she realized she wasn't really in time out!!!
She keeps us laughing for sure! Love this girl to the moon and back:)
Putting herself in time out for no reason that's hysterical.
ReplyDeleteMs. Iz puts herself in time out too but 9 times out of 10 it is for a reason.
Now we have to train Papa to not go talk to her while she's in the time out, sheesh! Instigator! LOL
Thanks for the chuckle this morning, too cute!
She is so funny. You are doing a wonderful job with her. How did she pick up on the signs so early. I am amazed at how many she can do. I love the story of putting herself in time out. poor thing, made me want to cry when you said she started to cry.
ReplyDeletethat is too cute with her and mya
ReplyDeleteOh are Zoya and Mya best friends or what? Soo cute!
ReplyDelete