Toddler Tricks - 14

Ways to Trick your Baby:

Problem:  Your toddler is insane.  She's literally nuts.  She wants a cookie.  No!  Not that cookie!  That one over there.  No!  She wants to pick it out herself.  No!  Not off the counter.  From the package.  Actually, she doesn't want a cookie.  She wants a video.  No!  Not Sesame St., not Dora.  Blue's Clues.  No!  Not Blue's Clues, Thomas the Train.  Actually, she doesn't want a video, she wants a CD.  She wants to sing.  Wait!  Why did you shut the video off?  She wanted the video!  She doesn't want a CD, after all.  Ad nauseum.

Solution:  Breathe.  Seriously.  Take a breath first.  Drown out that tension, whining, crying, tantrum or whatever it is you know your child is building towards.  Get down on their level, look at them quietly.  This will usually quiet them for the crucial three seconds you need.  Then, speak slowly.  Not only will this temper your own anger if you have any (like I usually do) it will also make things more clear for a person who is just starting to grasp the language.  What you say, offer, do or don't do is entirely up to you.  But the low-speaking, slow-speaking method is the easiest way to stop a simmering toddler from boiling, in my experience.


Ways your Baby can Trick You:

Problem:  Your baby looks at your calm slow-speaking self and laughs in your face.  "No, woman!  I do not wish to be placated.  I am on a roll here!"  she says clearly, and proceeds to thrash about while you stare on in dazed astonishment.

Solution:  Wait.  Tell yourself that tomorrow will soon be here, and this awful day will end.  That it's just a phase and this too shall pass.  Tell yourself whatever you need to, to make it through this day.  In the meantime keep up consistency.  A time out, a countdown, a swat to the backside, whatever you do in your family.  I'm not here to tell you which brand of discipline works for you.  I will tell you that whatever disciplinary acts you take may or may not work depending on the day.  If it doesn't look like it outright worked, at least you were consistent.  Consistency is key.  And so is waiting.  I cannot stress that enough.  Tomorrow is a new day.