What can you buy with 7 “brownie points”? by “the better half” aka Jeff aka babe aka daddy

note from tara: jeff has wanted to hijack the blog forever now-unfortunately, the way i am about housework? yes, that is the way he is about writing things down. so, its taken awhile. i thought it might be fun every once in awhile to get his point of view on how things go around here. his category is called “the better half”. his idea. im allowing it.

So about a week ago I brought flowers home for Tara and made some comment about earning some brownie points with the wife. Pretty typical but this time Drew (10 years old) heard the word brownie and instantly wanted some. He started to pepper me with questions about these mysterious points like: what are they? What can you buy with 10 brownie points? And most importantly he wanted to know how he could acquire some of his own.

Brownie points are such a vague thing that I had trouble convincing him that they actually exist at first. I mean what exactly is a brownie point and what exactly do you get for one? I ended up giving him a sweeping generalization that they were a favor or something nice you did for someone who would later repay the favor for you. However, this course of reasoning cracked and crumbled under the inquisitive questioning of a 10 year old. When my answers didn’t add up for him, he asked, “OK, well how many brownie points do I need to get a soda?” And then it happened…

I was about to explain that brownie points don’t work like that and I am sure he would have blown the whole thing off as some kind of prank I was trying to pull. But then I got a quick glimpse into the possible gold mine I had stumbled across.

“Well…” I answered, “uummm… 7 brownie points for a soda.”

And he bought it! Not only did he buy it but he quickly rushed to inform his brother that for a measly 7 brownie points they could get a soda. The idea spread like wildfire to the other children and soon I had them all frothing at the mouth to earn some brownie points. I would just arbitrarily assign point values to things like 12 points for 30 minutes of gameboy time. You wouldn’t believe how effective this technique has been. All I have to do is mention brownie points and I can get the kids do the dishes, bring in the groceries, quiet down in the car, or give me a quick back rub.

And the fact that I am so arbitrary with my distribution of the points just seems to whip them up into a frenzy even more. I may very well be sick and wrong, but it is so much freakin fun to just randomly award McKenna with 100 brownie points and watch the chaos erupt. To regain control I simply start giving out brownie points to the kids that calm down.

My friend Jon made the funny observation that I am the Drew Carey of Brownie Points. We used to get so riled up when he would just randomly award points on the show Whose Line Is It Anyway?

I am sure that very soon the gig will be up, but until then I can answer the question: What can you buy with 7 Brownie Points?

a can of soda = 7 brownie points
30 minutes of game time = 12 brownie points
staying up an extra hour after bed time = 17 brownie points
4 mislead children and 1 resourceful dad… priceless.

-Jeff, aka the better half

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82 Comments

  1. Ok I’ve read your wife’s blog for a long time now but have never commented..this is funny..better yet ..this is BRILLIANT and I think we need a book written of more helpful techniques. :)

    Lookin’ forward to reading more entries from you!

  2. One summer we did this. I told the boys about brownine points, they wanted some, so I had a tally board on the fridge, for every 10 brownie points they got ice cream. It was beautiful! We must try it again this summer!

  3. I’ve been having one of the crapiest days that I’ve had in a long time and came here for some distraction from my tears. You not only stopped my tears, but you made me laugh! That is worth 10,000 brownie points! I’m off to see if I can con…I mean teach my kiddos about brownie points and their value.

  4. This is hilarious! Now I know why our beloved Tara loves YOU so much. You are the prince of brownie points. If my kids weren’t beyond the age where they’ll buy into this, I’d try it! And by the way, YOU get brownie points for wanting to take part in the wife’s blog!

  5. Fabulous! Here’s another one, when my kids were little I had this journal, which was filled with completely empty pages……..but not empty to a mother’s eyes. Whenever we would run up against an issue with which they disagreed, such as bedtime, or bathtime, we would have to turn to page (insert random number here) and read from the wisdom of the mommy book…….worked like a charm everytime! Only four or five years ago, when my daughter was nine, and we were sorting things into boxes in the basement, and came across the mommy book did the question finally arise, “Mom, am I old enough to read the writing in the book yet?” “Nope, only wise mommies ( and sometimes daddies)can see what is written.” Silence……..and then, “When I grow up and am a mommy, can I be the one who gets the book?” yep, it’s priceless stuff….good for you, Jeff…….an imaginative dad ( and mom like Tara!) are the greatest gifts you can give your lucky children!

  6. i had a good hard belly laugh at this one! i’m a first timer on your blog here…a good friend of April’s (you may or may no know her in WA). anyhow, i can very much relate to the idea of an untangible thing being worth such a great price! thanks for the laugh, good luck with those brownies!

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