There’s no way around it, if you have a 2 year old, at some point you are going to be on the receiving end of a tantrum. It sucks, but if you are setting boundaries, at some point those boundaries will be tested in a way that is both noisy and uncomfortable.
The middle of a tantrum is not the time to engage in conversation. Nor is it is the time to attempt to distract. (I speak from experience.) No, it is the time to repeat the rule, at intervals, but otherwise just be there. Continue reading
Adding to the list of ‘did my mother-in-law really mean that’ sayings…
18-month old BabyGirl was being a bit cheeky – she was standing on a battery-operated toy. I told her ‘we use our hands, not our feet’ (something I’m saying on a daily basis right now), and when she just sort of looked at me I went over and gently moved her feet.
‘All the research shows that warm but firm parenting has the best outcome for kids, and often what parents are doing is the warm but not the firm.’ – Dr Emma Rush, ethicist
From a very interesting (and sadly all too true) article by Deborah Snow, ‘Stealing the Innocence of Children’.
BabyBoy and BabyGirl are still very young, so we are not far along our disciplining journey yet. However, I stumbled across these wise words from a fellow blogger, which I hope to remember in the days to come:
– Three non-negotiables for disciplining your kids: disobedience, dishonesty, and disrespect.
– Allow your kids to make mistakes and learn from them while the consequences are low. (This is one of my favorite comebacks when busybodies look at me in horror as I let BabyBoy and BabyGirl explore new things.)
– Don’t be afraid that your kids won’t like you. They may not like you now, but they will like you later when they are adults. (Oh, so so true.)
– Side with your children against their disobedience. Use the words “oh no!” to side with your kids. Say, “oh, no, there’s going to be consequences for that,” or “oh no, now you’re going to have to apologize.“ (Love this idea, will be implementing immediately!)
– The disciplining process is about restablishing broken relationships. Ask yourself, how can I discipline my child in order to restore our broken relationship? (A lovely way to look at disciplining as a process rather than simply a punishment.)
afterninemonths 