And so it has begun...Cbeebies with it's non advertising policy has been abandoned by Matilda. Sadly she is now beginning to outgrow it, occasionally I do manage to fool her but she now demands Peppa Pig which is shown practically non stop on Nick Jr (I have nothing against the station per se it's just that it is crammed with adverts for the most useless looking toys or Good Living magazine for Mummies that happen to take a glimpse at the tv) . They have the desired effect, nevertheless as Matilda has now taken to exclaiming 'I want dat Mummy' at every ad break. Something that I have dreaded since the moment she began to have an opinion about the world around her.
From Barbies to flashing slippers to Dora toys, her shopping list is getting longer by the day. She doesn't quite grasp the concept that we can't have things without paying for them, and that sometimes the budget just does not stretch to another singing/flapping cuddly toy. Bills and food are Mummy and Daddy's priorities not the latest Cbeebies magazine or latest neon Barbie.
In order to start the process of understanding the value and importance of money, I now let her pay at the counter for her magazine. As she gets older she will have to complete chores for her pocket money, though I suspect this idea would fall on deaf ears at the moment. However, we can begin to try to explain we can only buy things when we have money to pay for them. Yesterday I only took £2 with me when I picked her up, I had a feeling she would want to pop into the local corner shop. Lo and behold she scooted straight in.
I explained the restriction on pennies which provoked a little strop when we couldn't buy the Pony magazine as it was £3.75 but eventually came away with a £2 one. Not quite what she had envisaged, though I had made a point (or so I thought).We counted out the change together, then she took it up to the counter to pay very proudly, clearly feeling very grown up. She particularly likes to receive a receipt which she calls 'her ticket'.
Later that afternoon whilst watching an ad break, an advert came on for Legoland. Immediately I heard her declare 'Mummy I want to go to Legoland'. Think I need to go back to the drawing board as at their prices I don't think she'll be going any time soon! Peppa Pig...you have a lot to answer for.
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