We all deal with tantrums in our own ways. Every kiddo is different and certainly every parent is different. For me, I’ve found that a little creativity goes a long way. As my daughter is now a full-fledged (terrible) two-year-old, I find that in worst-case scenario meltdowns, sometimes I bend the truth to keep her head from spinning completely off. From time to time, I’m actually pretty impressed with my creativity.
For example, over the 4th of July weekend, we made our annual trip down to the Lake of The Ozarks. We got together with friends and spent a few days boating, playing games, lounging, etc. I was a little nervous about taking her this year. At this age, she’s not always a great listener and she has no fear. Those aren’t exactly great traits for hanging out at a large body of water.
Our first hour at the lake house, we decided to head to the dock. We put a life jacket on her and she FREAKED OUT! She was crying, screaming, and throwing herself all over the place. It was ugly. Eventually we figured out that getting in the lake was the only answer. Once she was in the water with Daddy and then playing on the lily pad, she forgot about the injustice of having to wear a life jacket.
On day two, the solution wasn’t as simple. We had a good 30-minute struggle with the life jacket on the dock. Not even getting in the water helped. She was adamant that she was NOT wearing the life jacket, so we went and played inside instead.
Later in the day, everyone decided to hop in the pontoon and head to other side of the lake. As they loaded into the boat, I had to think quickly. How could I get a life jacket on the tiny tyrant so we could all go for a boat ride? Ah-hah! She likes puppies a lot. Maybe I can work with that.
“Um, hey Sweetie,” I whispered. “Here’s a puppy jacket for you. This is what the puppies wear in the boat. They ride on the boat and say ‘ruff-ruff’!” It was a shot in the dark… and it worked! She smiled and willingly let me put the newly named “puppy jacket” on her. Then, with a smile, she barked her way to the dock and we successfully made it onto the boat.
She was great on the boat ride. Every so often you would hear a cute little bark come from under her floppy sunhat. It all worked out. I felt like a champion about it, too — I played the player. And, I won! Note: I really don’t fib often, but with this one being a safety issue, it was necessary. I HAD to get creative. I’m just so glad she got to go on the boat ride without shedding any tears. And, I think she was pretty proud of her puppy jacket, too.
Creativity is a must when you have a toddler! We are constantly making up reasons and stories of why we have to do certain things with our son. He definitely keeps us on our toes!
Andrea – we’d love to hear your stories!