Got no patience for my toddler...

[timneh_mom]

I love him, but honestly right now, being around him makes me want to claw my eyes out! He hates sleeping and is SO crabby, he has been fighting it at naps and bedtime (and yes, he needs both consistently). He screams "NO" at everything, no matter what it is, if we're trying to go somewhere (even somewhere fun) or heaven forbid, stop something he's enjoying... giving him an early warning that we are leaving does nothing... life with him always seems to be a struggle lately! He loves whipping stuff across the room, slamming things into other things... pretty much anything to piss me off! The throwing toys has GOT to stop because I can't have him throwing wooden blocks when the baby is here!

He's got a lot of really sweet characteristics and I know the negativity is part of being 2, but my gosh... how the heck am I going to handle a newborn on top of him??? He's really active and energetic, and needs a LOT of help settling down/stopping/going to sleep... I just have no energy for dealing with him. DH helps a TON, but he works full time and I'm a full time SAHM.

I don't know that I need advice, just some sympathy... :

[MCKMN]

Well thank god you do not need adivse cause I am afraid I would lead you in the wrong direction...: I DO however relate too what you are going through.. Nis is 2.5 and let me tell you , he went from sweet, sweet ..PRECIOUS.. to Holy Terror.. Everything is such a chore for him these days. We have a hitting issue with him right now. This is very hard too tame.. Has has no quams about smacking maddy in the face, or pulling her hair, or throwing toys at her. He has even hit us a few times. He has takin too kicking the dogs.. We are not a family of hitting, or anything like that, so I have NO IDEA where this even comes from..
Diaper changes with him, have gotten me a few hard kicks in the belly
He is my first HITTER so this is a hard one for me.

Sending you some big time hugs! I truely can realte too the toddler issue..

[anabellee]

i have a hitter too and i've got no idea where it came from because we're not a hitting family either. maybe it's just a phase. my biggest problem with ds right now is the carrying all the time, it's just too uncomfy. thank goodness he's so small for his age! i can't imagine what carrying a "normal" size toddler right now would be like.

[jilly]

Ug, they are so frustrating, aren't they? Andrew is not sleeping lately -- like waking at 5:30 or 6 which just kills me, and dh played wrestling with him on the futon while watching tv, so my quiet hour of putting in a video and going back to sleep are over -- now he just wants to climb all over me.

I must say that I find that "two-ness" comes in waves, at least with Andrew, so he'll have a really terrible couple of weeks followed by a really sweet couple of weeks. So maybe they're all just getting it out of their systems now and will be wonderful when the baby comes. Ha ha ha. We can all dream.

[MoonWillow]

timneh_mom . I have a 2 year old too, born 11/6/04. I always thought he'd come on 11/11 and I still think that if they didn't take him via c section that he would have.
Anyway It's like your describing him. He's a sweetheart but resists everything. He doesn't want to get dressed and then he doesn't want to get undressed. He doesn't want to get in the car and then he doesn't want to get out of the car. You name it!
The only way I can deal with it is to ignore it, the tantrumming. It does seem to have a mild effect at least because he will kind of look around to see who is watching and if no one is, sometimes he stops. But it's the worst when you really have to go somewhere and don't have the luxury of letting him throw himself of the floor because you are late for an appointment.
Really though it seems for us that the least resistance on my part, the smoother things go. For instance he never wants his diaper chnaged but I've noticed that rather than trying to wrestle with him, if I just tell him it's time for his diaper, he will come over for it eventually. But I sit there like a fool with a diaper in my hand in the meantime, for who knows how long lol.
Oh and the throwing toys? CONSTANTLY! Wooden toys and metal cars, everything! It drives me crazy!
Do you ever spend time in the Gentle Disclipline forum? I lurk occasionally and sometimes think that I would like to follow GD more formally but then I think I that I don't like subscribing to any one way of doing things. I'm more of an instinctual kind of gal. Not that it's working so well lol!
I also wanted to tell you that you crack me up. Saying that you want to claw your eyes out and the other day saying that your bed is an instrument of torture. You're sense of humor is awesome Sorry it's about things that are bugging you. But your'e not alone! That's for sure!

[WinterBaby]

Ack, this was my daughter at 2. We don't hit either, but man has she always been a hitter. It got much better (although she's 4 and been acting up a bit lately with me being unable to do much.) She'll be giving gentle hugs and kisses one moment, whacking you in the head the next. Safe to say, she's just physical in all she does/feels. She never napped by 2. And everything was no. Forever. There was no other answer to a question. Potty training became quite the trick - you couldn't *ask* her if she had to go, just tell her you were going to beat her to the bathroom to have her race you there, lol. We didn't have much in tantrum problems though. (Well, except perhaps mine when she's pulled my hair, LOL.) I can't imagine trying to deal with any of this pregnant though. I thought it was tough getting through with nothing else going on and found couple half-day a week preschool to be heaven, lol. You ladies must be amazing to handle this while expecting and then with a new baby While pregnant I keep telling my husband I'm not sure *everyone* in the house is going to live til the new baby gets here, lol. Just hang in there because it's gotta be hard. The frustration gets overwhelming at times, but I'm sure your family will find ways to adjust to accomodate the new baby. I keep telling myself mine will anyhow, heh. Keeping the sense of humor will help it happen )

[raeinparis]

liz, i'm right there too. ds is lovely and a sweetheart but sometimes just too much! the other day i was thinking how much more helpful a mum i could be if i weren't pregnant : i rarely pick him up -- although i give him loads of cuddles -- and never carry him. so if we're out and he makes a fuss it's home with us.

gotta go, he just made some poopies...

[Gray's Mommy]

This was my 6 year old yesterday...a little terror for me. Today is looking much better though He was really overtired & maybe getting a slight cold.

[dooney]

I work in a daycare and usually it's great but there's this ONE kid who makes me want to scream sometimes... I think God's preparing me for what mine's going to be like...

[p1gg1e]

Yep I'm in the 2yo boat also... I feel like I'm doing this all day...

Gosh I'm grumpy!: