My boys love cars. They have hundreds of little matchbox cars. They cherish these little cars. They have their very favorite super special ones, and then all the others. They know which cars belong to who, and they can probably tell you when and where they got it, just incase they are on trial to prove that the beloved matchbox car is theirs, the keep very detailed records in their heads about these cars and how they were acquired.

Twin 1 loves mustangs. He's a fan of the classic models, really loves them. If we pass one, he has requested that I turn around and follow it. He REALLY loves mustangs.

Twin 2 loves exotic cars. Ferrari's, lamborghini's, he's all about those.

The twins were playing with their cars yesterday afternoon, they had a whole track built. They could do this for hours. SD4 came in and stomped and kicked it to pieces. The boys were furious. They came into the kitchen where DH and I were folding laundry. Twin 2 is my more verbal twin. He speaks for the both of them. He is not happy. Twin 1 is more like the back up. He nods, and says yea a lot when they are in agreement about certain situations. Twin 2 marches up and tells us that SD4 just came in and kicked down twin city. They had a track built, and they were just about to have a race when SD4 came in and destroyed it! Twin 1 nods. They each have 2 cars in each hand. Twin 2 goes on to explain that SD4 also took one of twin 1's cars. The shelby mustang. Twin 1 shows me his handful of cars and wants me to acknowledge that it is not in his hands. I agree, the shelby mustang is not in his hands.

I look at DH and give him the "lets go" look.

He says he wants to finish this stack of laundry first. I give him a confused look. He then goes on to tell me that if he jumped every time SD4 did something wrong, he'd never get anything done. The twins are still standing there. They want SD4 on a platter. They want justice!

I ask them to go back to their rooms and we will come handle the situation in a moment. I then explain to DH that I see 2 issues here. First of all, did it ever occur to him that if he handled things when they actually happened, and when it was fresh on SD4's mind, that she might have a better understanding of what is acceptable and what isn't. Also, what message are we sending to the twins? SD4 might get in trouble for what she's done, she might not. She might have to give twin 1 his car back, she might not. It depends on the day...

He went and put her in timeout, made her give twin 1 his car back, and put her in time out. She also had to apologize when time out was over. She could clearly state what she had done wrong and why she was in trouble. This is progress, as she usually shrugs her little shoulders. DH wasn't so quick to agree... **sigh**

So, what are your thoughts on procrastination parenting. Do you think a situation should be handled when you get around to it, or should it be addressed right then?