Great Ways To Reward & Conquer The Terrible Threes!
by Louise Cameron
(Chesapeake, Virginia, United States )
The man
When my son turned 2 years old, I waited patiently for the rapture to pass through the clouds and engulf me.
There, to my surprise, was nothing.
The very day he turned three years old is when the craziness started.
My son embarked on a journey to rob me of my sanity, repossess my patience and leave me defeated.
Being the mother I am, I endured and found creative ways to counter his seemingly crazy behavior.
During the years when your child is calling you by your maiden first name, the solution for resolve is very easy: don’t answer.
The more your child uses your first name, the more they are testing you and trying to validate using this as a labeling mechanism for you. They realize they should be calling you “mommy” or “mom” but pushing your buttons is more fun than any playground.
Before you turn around and give your child the gaze of utter dismay, don’t respond. After a few moments your child will resume calling you mommy or mom.
One of the best discipline tricks is a method I actually picked up from Super nanny.
My son decided that he was going to stomp, yell and fall out. I got down on one knee to his eye level, made sure we had eye contact and in a low voice let him know that the behavior was not going to be tolerated.
Sounds like something that would waste your time?
Not if you realize the technique to it.
I would count this as his warning, the next time he had an outburst of any size, he would be sent straight to the “naughty” chair or would have all the toys removed from the area and be forced to sit with me in silence.
There is nothing a child hates more than to know that their parent is upset with them because of their behavior.
I’m aware that children will react at different times and different phases.
Discipline should start early so your child realizes that you are the parent setting the boundaries and they cannot be crossed.
Capital punishment is never recommended; hitting a child teaches the child to hit.
Finding fun ways to discipline is the fun part of being a parent.
