You're.. Driving.. Me.. Crazy, BABY!!!

And let me add that in a few minutes I'm off to a new job where I will not only be a mothers helper to a pregnant woman about to POP in June, but she also has TWIN TWO YEAR OLD BOYS and besides watching them and cleaning up after them I THINK she needs help around the house etc.. AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!@!!!#@*&@!#(*&#@(*@&!#!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Double the crazy!!!!!!!!

I am SO telling her I'll take the job on a trial basis and see how I feel at the end of next week.. no way in HELLZ I'm signing up permanently for this

Ok biznitches I'm off to brave twin toddlers and a pregnant moose about to pop

wish me luck Ahhhhhhhhhhh

Sounds like terrible twos have struck! Brandon still goes through it sometimes at 4 1/2, so I'm not going to be very much help, lol I didn't think terrible twos existed until he come alone.

Do kids really react this way when they turn 2?? Why would they change all of a suden?

Has something changed in the home? do the parents argue? is there any kind of hostility? i would ask these questions first.

With you he always got along well, have you changed? are you giving him less atention? etc ect ask some questions first

Karma, poor karma! Here's what little this may help. My nephew had speech problems due some birth difficulties and when he began to try to talk he would get so frustrated because he could not communicate or say what he wanted to that he got terrible two-sey. Screaming and crying!

Is Elijah just learning how to talk and maybe is getting frustrated??? Also, he's learning how to manipulate you so I'd put a stop to that quick. But he's figuring all of that out with everyone it seems so maybe establish how you are with him.

My sister is an excellent mom- my nephew has needed so much more care because he suffered a stroke in the womb right before birth- anyways- she has devoted lots of attention. And he seems completely normal now, speech is more articulate than mine, seriously, at 5 (thanks to classes).

But she says things like "use your manners", etc at all times with him and also my fav is "make good choices, nash, is that a good choice?" and she lets him think about it for a minute and he decides. He is the happiest most well behaved kid I know. Heaven knows if I'll be able to do that.

yeah some do, yaya. They don't really know the right words for expressing their needs, and you have to teach them how to react to their feelings. They also start having independence issues around that age, and they want to do things like pick out their own clothes, food, drinks, cups, etc..., and they get MAD when they don't get that. Brandon was so bad that he would go without eating or drinking if I didn't give him a certain plate. I put him in his room, and he went without until he apologized. Then, he ate off the plate I gave him, but he still wasn't happy about it. He still does things like that now, but it's more of wanting what Jake has now (even if they have the exact same thing, he wants Jakob's). At least he knows if he's throwing a tantrum to go straight to his room. I don't want to hear or see them! lol

oh, just wanted to add not all kids are like that. Brandon is VERY strong-willed and stubborn. Jake is very low-key and lets anyone get away with anything. Once he got over his terrible colic at 9 months, he's been an angel. I wish Brandon would have gotten his temperment, but he takes after me. At least I outgrew it by elementary school and became a great kid, so hopefully he will too!

Thats so sweet Wynter I am sure they will be OK. I was more like Brandon, to this day my parents say I was teh worst of the 4 kids. I was a huge crier, a fighter, envious and jealous.

She says as a baby I put her through hell hahahahahaahaha. That none of the other kids did what I did, I mostly fought over my dad as I did not want the other 3 sibs to touch him she said I owned my dad hahahhahaha

Karma, has he been sleeping okay? Brandon is awful when he hasn't had enough sleep. There's some days I have to make him take a nap, because he's acting so bad.

You see Karma? that is exactly why I only like BABIES. Children are a lot of work. Once they start talking and walking, all the fun is gone

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* I want a vacation *

at least for me. My friends with babies however, they ALL say that they enjoy their children much more once they're a bit older... I only like babies

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* I want a vacation *

I love you karma!! I feel your pain!! Hang in there.

Ethan loves to do that..esp now with time outs or his room. Its the psycho don't know what I what toddler syndrome.

"Put me n my room, don't put me in my room, put me in my room!!! WWWAAAAAAA!" "
I want a waffle, I don't want a waffle, don't take it away, give it back, take it away I don't want it. NO!!!! Give it back!!!!!!!!!"

I think it is a test to see if they can make us lose our minds. Kinda like when they ask for something oh I don't know 1000 and 1 times in a row. And I am always convinced at that moment that there is a hidden camera in the house somewhere set to record my reaction.

What is truly depressing is the fact that as soon as E grows out of it it will be George's turn. Someone just kill me now!

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Return the child NOW or face the consequences Earthlings!

Sounds like you're not the cool new buddy anymore, now you're just another bossy lady. That + terrible twos = insanity.

All you can do is stay consistent, model rational behavior and do your best not to reward bad behavior. And go home and scream in a pillow. Drink lots of wine. And jump up and down on your bed until you feel better.

Then call me in the morning.

Oh and what Wynter said too. I found the best way to help prevent Little Man's frustration was to give him lots of control over unimportant shizz. Do you want this cup or that cup? Would you rather wear your underwear on your head? Should Mommy bang her head on the wall or pull out her hair? But no seriously, give him a chance to feel like he's making decisions when it doesn't matter, and he'll be more likely to go along with your decisions when it does matter.

Also, timeouts are very helpful. At that age, not so much as punishment, but as a way to remove them from the stressor, give a minute to decompress and start again. No more than two minutes or so at his age, though.

at the girls comments! sounds very logical though
Karma, at least you're getting tons of awesome experience that will be useful once you start having your own kids.

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* I want a vacation *

Karma,

Ugh. I'm so not looking forward to Savannah going through that stage. I pretty much second everything Jen said-- be consistent, model the behavior you want to see in him, no more than a minute per year of age on the timeouts, and give choices when possible.

One other piece of advice that has always stuck with me since I took a class called "Magic 1,2,3": Do not think of them as tiny adults. And think of YOURSELF as a small animal trainer. The "Magic 1,2,3" philosophy is that you give a first warning, a second warning, and on the third time you immediately discipline with a time out. You take emotion out of your voice and behaviors and you don't talk and explain things, you just do them.

And then, yes, copious amounts of alcohol and pillow-punching at home.

I hear you. My daughter is so irrational sometimes, it drives me nuts (she's 4 though). I just kind of try and reason with her once and then just let her freak for a while. It's funny because in a few minutes, she'll realize that she's being silly and start looking at me like "can I stop crying now"... she's just not sure how to take back what she started.

~SwtAsSgr~

LOL Jen, should momy pull her hair out? hahahaahahaa

lol Jen's right on the money. The one thing I can remember is let them make decisions, but never with a yes or no answer, because its usually no. Like, if you have to go to the store, don't ask, do you want to go to the store, you ask them if they want to go out the front or back door, what shoes do you want to wear, what coat.....You get the idea. And some of those questions, you may want to pick, and let them chose, like the black or green coat, or they end up wanting to wear sandals in winter, or something.

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"You can think I'm wrong, but that's no reason to quit thinking." - House

OMG you guys, seriously.. just reading that I'm not the ONLY ONE that is dealing with this stuff makes me feel SO.MUCH.BETTER!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Wynter he's so so with the sleep.. he has allergies right now, he gets ear infections and colds on and off, so I definitely notice a difference when he's had a bad nights sleep.. but I think he's basically just going through what you described, terrible twos Very much wanting independence, wants to do whatever I tell him not to and is loving it.. I put him in three time outs yesterday and he didn't care!!!! Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

Good point on the time outs not being a punishment Jen.. but I put him in the time out, he sits there smiling and talking and calling happily HAPPILY for me, and then when the time out is over.. he goes back to whatever naughty thing he was doing almost instantly!

And girls he is extremely violent right now! The biting, pinching, kicking, slapping, scratching.. you name it! He'll actually try to scratch your face or pinch your arm as hard as he can and just laugh and do it again.. and it HURTS!! I watched him bite Rachel as hard as he could on her neck!!!!!!! AND he is extremely violent with the dogs.. poor things, he loves to kick and hit them, step on their feet, pull their tales, hit them on the head with things.. and getting knocked over or scratched by them doesn't deter him in the slightest!

Red yeah he's just learning how to speak really so I'm sure its frustrating for him.. and I think its going to be a problem that between myself and his two parents he's not getting consistency. Rachel and I were talking about it yesterday and she was telling me that Guy is very lenient and as soon as Elijah starts crying he picks him up, takes him out of a time out, whatever, and Rachel ops for leaving him there even if he's upset (which is what I agree with..) Figures too because Guy is almost never home

Hmm I actually do ask him questions (what do you want to do, where do you want to go, which cup do you want, etc.) quite a bit so I'll keep that up..

As for screaming into a pillow and drowning myself in alcohol.. I'll be starting that this weekend

Haha Yayi yes kids react this way sometimes when they turn two and no, nothing has changed in the household.. I treat him the same way I always have, so do his parents.. He's just a toddler learning that he can in fact say NO, do his own thing, and throw a tantrum when he doesn't get his way.. le sigh

Add to that the TWINS that I'm not watching and oh Lord I need to stock the fridge with beer..

Shiloh hahahahahaha I swear when I leave work every day I promise myself I'll never have kids.. ever.. EVERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

*NOW watching.. not *NOT watching.. I am in fact watching them