My son Owen is now 2.5 years old and what joys we experience with him! It would be really interesting to know the brain development of a two year old! Why does the terrible twos have to be true? We thought we had it bad when Owen was a year old! He has a very strong personality but can also be a shy sensitive soul! Since he was born he was all or nothing! He would be a perfect little angel one day and the opposing devil screaming barbarically the next! And he has kept that up for 2.5 years now! I was at my breaking point the other day when I confided in an amazing mom of three boys and I said “am I failing as a Mom? What am I doing wrong?” She said “No you are not failing, and you are not doing anything wrong, a lot of boys go through the stage and some are worse!”
I found a little relief in her words and began putting things in perspective. I thought about how truly amazing it is to experience how a toddler develops and what they develop! The art of throwing temper tantrums is so quickly learned! Sometimes I just don’t get it. He will be playing so nicely and his sister comes within 2 feet of him, or he wants the only toy another child has and it is instant meltdown, back arching, crying on the ground if mom says no. During the tantrum there is no talking to the child! There is no reasoning or listening, there is no comforting, nothing! We learned to tell him once (i.e. not to take toys from other children) and then we put him in a safe place to quiet down. He often comes out of this timeout on his own and if he is not overtired they are resolved fairly quick. Also we are working on avoiding these tantrums through communication before there is an issue… If only I could constantly see into the future! Do you have a way of dealing with your toddlers tantrums? Or avoiding them swiftly?
I adore my dear son, but being a mom to an active energetic toddler is tough! I have a couple friends who have quiet, passive toddlers and they don’t understand! I find it so exhausting because he never stops! He is always going and requires a lot of attention- apparently positive or negative! I have noticed though, that the more Owen is outside playing or has little projects inside, the better he behaves. It seems like he gets bored sometimes and throws a tantrum to spice things up a bit! I also learned he is worse when he is hungry or has eaten a lot of processed or sugary foods, or if he doesn’t sleep well or enough.
There are so many fun skills developed during the toddlers years, which do yours possess? Owen has started pretend play with his sisters tea set, or his kitchen. He also practices drawing circles, O’s and D’s for Daddy! We are also working on toilet training! Some days he is great and goes each time on his own, but seems to be a lazy trainer (or very smart!). He will pee in a pull up or diaper if it is on, otherwise he will go to the bathroom! Do you have any toilet training tips for active boys!? I think a lot is dependent on their personality because some days he wants to and others doesn’t- Those days I lose the battle.
Despite days of not listening, and doing everything in his power to defy me, I love the little guy! He makes it all worthwhile when out of the blue he says “I love you, mommy.” Because I know he does!
Comments (10)