Sunday, March 2, 2008
The Powerless No
What happened to my sweet little baby? I thought he was an angel, never crying or throwing a fit, just a sweet mild mannered boy. Now I fear that has come and gone. Another side has taken over: the demanding, stubborn toddler. I know he understands what I mean by "no" I just don't think he cares. Friday night I was making dinner and he was playing in the living room. Asher loves his toys, but it seems lately he would rather play with things that don't belong to him. The remote, the off button on the TV, coasters on the table, magazines, cat food etc. On this night he chose the coaster, not as something to chew on or throw, but to bang loudly on the glass table. When I told him no, he continued to bang on it. When I said no again, in a much firmer tone, he banged louder. So I "hurdled" the gate and went to take it from him... he banged more as I came closer. I said NO again and took it from him. He looked at me with a stern face and slapped the table with his hand in protest. At this point I didn't know what to think. This is my 13 month old, where does he get this stuff? Needless to say Asher experienced his first time out; I have a feeling it won't be the last. I know there is a sweet little boy still in there; I type this as his dad reads books to him. He is learning to be independent... at least I hope that's what he's learning.
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2 comments:
Oh, how he changing...yet, he is still so cute. Sometimes, all you can do since they have such a short attention span is divert their attention. Tell him no, then call to him from the kitchen with a bag of pretzels or goldfish in your hand and coax him away from the table. He won't think you are rewarding him for banging on the table, because he will have forgotten what he was doing as soon as you put his mind on something else. That won't work in a few months, but it will now. Diversion of some sort should help, or sit him in his chair in front of the TV with his favorite show on while you need him occupied.
Ah yes, the infamous testing of the boundaries. We're right in the thick of it too with Conor, although each month gets better. Don't take it personally. We do time-outs too, and they've been very effective. His remorse is the cutest thing ever.
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