"The toddler test..."
Published by Kristina & Breanne,
Posted by Breanne Smedley |
Over the past couple of days, I saw the "toddler test" floating around social media.
The concept was simple. Place a bowl of a treat in front of your toddler. Tell her that she can't eat it until you get back.
Leave for a couple minutes.
Come back and see if the 2 year old could stand the test of patiently waiting to dig into the desired treat.
All while filming, of course. Because anyone with a toddler knows that they aren't the best truth-tellers.
(In fact, ever ask a toddler if she's poopy, when you know full well that lump in the back of her pants is dead giveaway. Answer is "nooooooo..!" Every time. Liar!)
So, we need film evidence of what really went on while mom was gone.
The videos I saw of other toddlers doing this were hilarious.
Some waiting for a bit until they just couldn't take it anymore and devoured the whole bowl.
Some sneaking just one or two candies.
Some licking the contents of the bowl, but not eating anything.
Some chewing the candy, then putting it back.
And most, lying when mom comes back, trying to cover it up.
"Did you eat any?" The mom would inquire.
"No!" The toddler would reply, some even with a mouth full of candy.
I was so curious to see what Charlee would do.
I also wondered if this was torture, but I'm sure it won't be the first time I have my kids do something purely for my entertainment.
We did the experiment a couple times.
The first time, with a bowl full of blueberries.
The second, a bowl full of crab meat that she had been asking to eat all day.
Results were the same, both times.
I explained to Charlee the details. No eating until mom gets back.
As I left, the video shows her staring at the bowl.
Then looking towards the direction that I left the room.
Then back to the bowl.
Then, playing with her hands.
Licking her lips.
Getting her nose close to the bowl...just to smell. (I totally thought she was going to eat at that point!)
Looking again to see if I was going to come back soon.
It looked as if drool would slide down her face at any moment.
Until, finally, she sees me and decides its fair game.
Like a dog that is finally allowed to devour the treat, she grabs the bowl and eats the crab.
It was funny, and I was actually pretty surprised she sat and waited.
It was only about 90 seconds, though.
I wondered if there would ever be a breaking point.
What about 2 minutes, 5 minutes, 10 minutes...and hour?
Obviously, I'm not going to test this theory because we all know what would likely happen.
Eventually, I'm guessing she would give in.
Or come to find me.
It's the same with us. When I find myself wanting to make changes in my life, I know that will power can only get me so far.
In fact, my willpower sucks.
We adults have our own version of the "toddler challenge" all the time.
"I'm not going to eat sugar." Yet, I still keep it stashed away in the cupboard.
"I'm going to avoid being on my phone late at night." Yet, I sleep with my phone by my bed.
"I'm going to read more, and journal more." Yet, my journal and books are buried in a drawer.
It's only a matter of time.
Like a toddler sitting in front of that bowl of candy...how long until I break?
Instead of willpower, I need to alter my environment.
Remove the temptation all together.
Make it easy to achieve the habits I want, and hard to engage in the ones I don't want.
Set limits. Give myself rewards. Track my progress.
I guess I'm not that much different than a toddler, after all.
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