Saturday, January 19, 2008

Brat to Becoming in 30 Seconds....

Have you ever known of a child who could go from being the biggest BRAT in town to the most pleasant, becoming child in less than 30 seconds??? I unfortunately, am living with one right now. He is 4 and he, over recent weeks, has become VERY difficult to live with...I'm talking about That Other Kid.
He has always been a very high maintenance child, even when I first brought him home from the hospital.....I spent the first couple of weeks of his life doing nothing but tending to his every need. I slept in a rocking chair, took him to the bathroom with me, ate while nursing him, etc...I'm sure you get the idea. If I wasn't holding him he was screaming at the top of his VERY powerful lungs. Soooo I held him.

Maybe I contributed to his bad behavior way back then.....by catering to him....but I was soooooo tired, I did. Who knows??? Well anyway, now I am dealing with a child who seems to think his every whim should be met, and I mean right now! If he doesn't get what he wants, he turns into an evil, mean little boy.....what with the hitting, screaming, and tantrums it gets ugly around here. (And I'm not just talking about him!) I have done what all the big parenting experts recommend -- ignore him, send him to his room, spank him...you name it and I've tried it. So now I turn to my mom experts --- what do you do when your children are acting like BRATS???

The really bizarre part of his bratty behavior is after he is done having a meltdown he will be the sweetest, loving little boy on the planet. I love this little boy.....I love the other one, too...but IT IS HARDER....especially when I am the victim of those misconducts.

So......how do you deal with little boys like this????
Please give me all your advice!!!!

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Hi Ann,
Boy can I relate. Although mine's a girl.
Have you read "Parenting is Heart Work" by Scott Turansky and JoAnn Miller? Great book! And I just heard both of them speak at a children's ministers conference I recently attended. Very good stuff.
Hope this helps!