[waylonsmama]

I don't know what to do. Every morning now ds screams and screams and screams. I am gentle and loving and he scream and screams. Refuses to get dresses. Refuses to be with daddy. Pretty refuses everything...except "nanas"...nursing...which we do every morning before we get ready. But at some point we have to get ready....ds is 29 mo...he use to be great in the mornings. I have an in-home daycare so I have to be ready to start my day...but this stresses me out so much by the time my other kiddos arrive....2 other 2 yo...yes my days can be insane...I am already at my wits end...not a good way to start a day with 3 two year olds. I am at a lose of what to do. Please help!!!!!!!!

 

[Alyantavid]

I don't know. I have no advice but I'm in the exact same boat. I have found that turning everything into a game does get him happier and moving faster. Until something sets him off and I have refigure the game.

 

[Ophelia]

Is he able to have some say in the morning routine? Maybe he is trying to assert his independence.

Can you get him dressed at night instead and then just have him sleep in his clothes for the next day? That would eliminate that morning struggle. Try and give him choices if you don't already (but limit to 2 choices for each thing or he might get overwhelmed). Like do you want THIS or THIS for breakfast?

I can understand the frustration and stress, DS sometimes gives me a hard time in the morning, and I have to punch in for work I cannot be late. I think it is not as bad as it used to be. I try and let him do as much himself as possible.

Is he not getting enough sleep and maybe still too tired, or does he take a while to wake up? I have to try and give DS enough time to nurse, as he seems to want to nurse forever.

Another thing I do is get as much ready as possible in the morning before waking him up, if he doesn't wake up first. I have to get myself ready and get our lunches ready to go.

 

[sarahr]

Can you let him "win" some of the battles, some of the time? Can you let him stay in his pajamas, even after the other kids arrive? Can you wait to give him breakfast, maybe until a morning snack that all the kids get?

There are days that my 1 2-year-old wears me out, so I can't imagine having 3!

 

[2xy]

Okay, I'm not really getting what's going on here.

What, exactly, are you trying to do with him that he's screaming about? Is it breakfast, or getting dressed?

I guess what I'm wondering is why anything needs to be done at all if you aren't going anywhere.

When my kids were small, I worked OTH and they went to a home daycare, so I absolutely had to get them dressed, bundled, into the car, etc. They ate breakfast at daycare, but we would have a "snack" before we left. DS1 went through a period of being totally uncooperative about getting dressed....screaming enough so that neighbors came to see if we were okay.

But if we were going to be at home, I think I would have just let him wake up on his own and stay in his jammies.

 

[waylonsmama]

I really like the idea about getting him dressed the night before....I will definitely try that out. This is mainly about getting him dressed in the morning...sorry if it was not clear...I was a bit stressed when I posted this.

He definitely has days where he wears his pj's all day. I really think that he just needs a lot of time to wake up. Which I give him. He nurses for about 30 min. every morning...and I talk to him about what we are going to do to get ready for our day.

The reason he needs to be ready when his friends arrive is because they are also 2 and 3 2 year olds is a lot. It would be very hard for me to dress him while they are here. Also most of the time ds doesn't even wear pj's....so I just want him to put anything on. We play outside everyday....except when it is raining...those are the days that ds usually stays is his pj's. I already have to bundle up three kids....it would be a tremendous task to have to fully dress one and then bundle them up before going outside.

I know this is a phase...I am just looking for some support. Maybe someone can share some of the games they play to help their toddlers get dressed. The ones I have tried have not worked. Thanks.

 

[sarahr]

Quote:

Originally Posted by waylonsmama I know this is a phase...I am just looking for some support. Maybe someone can share some of the games they play to help their toddlers get dressed. The ones I have tried have not worked. Thanks.

Our problem is more with getting pajamas on at the end of the day, but the hokey pokey often works well -- "you put your right arm in (as the right arm goes into the sleeve), you put your right arm out (as her hand pokes through)" etc.

Another favorite is to have the pants "talk" to DD (I put my hands in the pants legs and use a funny voice to talk about how much the pants want to be on DD's legs). Although this sometimes backfires because she enjoys it so much and wants more, instead of actually getting dressed.