10 things to do when your kid throws a fit.........

OLD PICTURE BUT I LOVE IT!



So, I have been neglecting my blog and PEOPLE are starting to point that out!!! I am sorry, I am feeling lazy, fat, bloated, exhausted, and well I just haven't been in a "blogging mood". But I did read this article and it made me want to voice some of my own thoughts................and well with no one to listen but Maekayla, here I blog again.
So I got my latest issue of American Baby in the mail and the front page was talking to me :" 10 things to do when your kid throws a fit". I was excited to learn that there was more than pulling out your own hair and crawl under a rock. Turns out some people have actually put some thought into this and wanted to share the good news. Now I didn't like all 10, but did find a few that I could keep in my hat of tricks.

NO. 1: Ignore the kid. Now with that I am not sure how it works but they say it does. The logic is that a kid is "out of his mind" while he is throwing a temper tantrum" (that's obvious) and needs to get it out of his system. They say that during a fit the reasoning part of the mind is not working, "UM, you think?"......this one seems kind of common sense to me, but hey that's just me.
NO.2: Give your child some space. So basically ignore......okay just another way of saying number 1. (Maybe 9 things to do....didn't sound as good as 10).
NO.3: Create a diversion. Now this one I try on a daily basis at one point or another. Maekayla gets "off track" while we are out shopping. I try to take toys along to keep her attention, OR we do try to "move on" when she starts melting down. This one I do agree with.
NO.4: Find out what's really frustrating your kid. Okay with this one, they suggest that because children under age 2 1/2 have a 50 word vocabulary or less, they may have issues getting thier needs/wants expressed. So try to empathize with them and then try to help "play detective" to get to the root of the issue. I see where this one can work. Sometimes Maekayla is speaking a totally foreign language to me and I make her take me to the source of what's going on. It tends to work in certain circumstances.
NO.5: HUGS! Okay seriously Maekayla will trash about if she is really upset and you try to confine her during her meltdown. I am not sure of many situations this would fit into, but if it works for you..........GREAT!
NO.6: Offer food or R&R. Okay direct quote from article: "feed them, water them, and let them veg--wheter that means putting them to bed or letting them watch a little TV." This one is totally agreeable with me! If Maekayla is freaking out, her favorite movie of the moment will usually get her to lay out and chill for a bit. Right now we are into Chicken Little and The Wizard of Oz. If all else fails, pop in a DVD. However, if she just ate I am not up for comforting with food. Don't want to start her off with that kind of bad habit.
NO.7: Give your kid incentive to behave. Offer a preemptive bribe before expecting too much of your child. They say this kind of bribing is healthy as long as it's done by your terms and before the situation arises. They suggest if the child starts to go off key, gently remind them of the special treat and that should put them back on track.
NO.8: Speak calmly. This one I agree with IF you can keep your cool long enough for it to work. Most children are just wanting your attention during a melt down and so give them calm, reassuring attention rather than screaming back. Tension tends to just feed more tension anyway.
NO.9: Laugh it off. Keep your cool, just stay on key and don't give in. I am not sure I really understood this one..........whatever.
NO.10: Get out of there. Get away from "the scene of the crime". If you say "We are leaving in 5 minutes whether you are dressed or not", then in 5 minutes leave. Take the clothes with you and wait for the tantrum to pass and then you can address it rationally.

P.S. I am 14 weeks along today!