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Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Have the terrible 2's started early?

I must say I have been blessed.  Jack has been the most mild-mannered, sweet boy these past 18 months.  The only time he has ever really cried in the past was when he was in the hospital and they were torturing him or if he accidently bumped into something.  He never cried when he was hungry or tired....I just learned to read his cues.  Like when he would stick those 2 fingers in his mouth - he was ready to be cuddled and go to sleep or when he would just say "aah" he was hungry.  All in all - he never really cried or fussed.  He was always smiling, laughing and being silly.  And once I started teaching him signs - it made it even easier.  He signs for eat and more consistently now so that's quite helpful.

Well, we are over that hump I think.  He has learned and gained attitude.  My precious muffin has pitched his first fit.  That's right. This little one right here:

 At 18 months old he is trying to get out of things (therapy, putting on his coat, diaper changes) by screaming, kicking his legs and crying.  This started this past Sunday.  We were playing as usual and he just sort of freaked out.  I was so worried that he was in pain or hurt..then he would stop and go back to playing and then he would do it again.  He did this off and on all day/night until bedtime.  I was totally confused - was he teething? Did he have a tummy ache?  He had pooped, peed, eaten, etc...all his needs had been met.  I had no clue.  Then last night we got home and did our usual eat and play before PT.  Kayla, his PT arrived and we started tehrapy.  We are working on standing, crawling on all 4s and getting that big belly off the ground :).  About 20 minutes into therapy he started crying/ getting mad again.  He would reach out for me each time...it was heart breaking.  Then he would stop when he got his way, but as soon as we started working on something he would do it again!  STINKER!!!  So, then it was becoming clearer.  He was crying/ fussing to get out of working.  This was not going to fly.  We decided to comfort him when he is fitting, but not by picking him up - just by letting him cry a few minutes and then trying to re-direct with a song (He LOVES singing) and then back to the task.  As soon as Kayla left - he was my happy, sweet, calm little boy.  This is new to me and so unlike my Jack, so I am going to have to do some creative thinking especially since we have therapy 3 nights per week. 

Oh the terrible 2s may have started early.  This should be interesting.  What do some of you do for temper tantrums at this age and especially during therapy?

5 comments:

  1. That precious boy hitting the terrible twos early?! No way! ;-)

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  2. Welcome to my world!!! ;-) I wish you didn't have to join me, but it appears you aren't being given a choice. Sweet Pea has cried during a lot of her therapies since she was quite young. She doesn't like to work and so she cries. Just like Jack, she stops when mommy holds her and doesn't make her do anything. Too bad her mommy is mean and doesn't fall for it anymore unless she is REALLY mad. Then I take her for a minute to calm her down, but always make her do more work after she has calmed down.

    If this just started then I think you are doing the right thing. Trying to determine if something else is causing it and if not, distracting him with songs is great. I think they like to test their boundaries and try to be in control. People say it is good that she is opinionated, but I have to say it is frustrating too! :-)

    Good luck and I hope this is just a short term phase for Jack!

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  3. try getting his mind off the therapy as much as possible,if you are working on crawling etc try things like fruiloops as a reward,bright and colorful,taste good etc.My little one isnt DS but has had therapy twice a week for quite sometime,she turns 2 in a few weeks and she will refuse,throw fits etc so we do some of the sitting stuff with her in my lap :) hope this helps a little keep up the good work,awesome blog!

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  4. I am not laughing, I promise but it is good to hear when another parent is in my boad :) BUT I cant believe sweet Jack is in the terrible twos...not that precious smily boy :)

    hope it gets better soon

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  5. Aww, he looks to sweet to throw a fit, lol...Actually I feel your pain! Russell has just perfected his fake cry and has been throwing tantrums daily...I wish I had some advice for you, but I'm still trying to figure out where my perfect baby went too!

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