HELP, We are lost ladies as to what to do. Jade is 2.5 (3 on 2/22) and she has a mouth like you would not believe. She tells us she doesn't like us and we are mean. She will not listen I mean to the point of being right down at her level telling her to do something and her always saying I can't or just NO. Or she will just totally ignore you. She stomps her foot and slams her door and then will scream inside her room. She throws fits like you would never imagine. If she has a toy in her hand when she is getting in trouble she will throw it. She will just have a major meltdown at everything.

She is still napping (most days) for 2hrs a day. Depending on the situation she either has to sit in time out or she will get a spank if it is more serious.

We are lost as to what to do next. Please help.

By Reds9298 on Monday, November 6, 2006 - 10:52 am:

How does she do in time out? Do you have to restrain her? Does she kick and scream?

By Tonya on Monday, November 6, 2006 - 11:02 am:

Depends on the mood usually she will just sit and cry and flop on the couch. She will climb down we will put her back again. Then she will sit until we tell her to get up. And it is right back to doing what she is not suppose to do.

By Kaye on Monday, November 6, 2006 - 11:27 am:

I am going to post this here...but since you are having similar issues with both kids, this applies to both

Usually when kids are acting out like that, it is because they are seeing that behavior. It also can be diet/allergy related.

My quick fix suggestion would be this. No more screen time! No Tv, no computer, no video games at all. I am willing to bet, if you can make it through a full 8 days, you will see a huge improvement in their behavior. Then you have to decide what next. You really do have to completly pull the plug, not 30 minutes a day. The first two days will be heck, but they figure out how to make life work after that. Then after that 10 days, you can decide what next.

I am one of those people that felt like we didn't watch much tv, it wa on, but just for background noise. OH MY GOSH was I wrong. I took the challenge one year, really to prove to someone that tv didn't impact my kids. I was sooo wrong. I did have to physically remove all temptation (i just unpluged the tv), but i collected all video games, etc. I only watched tv after the kids went to bed.

Anyway, just a thought for you. Another radical thing is to really examine what they are eating...are they having a lot of artificial flavors and colors, a lot of preservatives. When allergies are causing issues, in essence it is like them having a headache all the time and trying to think straight. Kelly preston strong believes in removing all chemicals from the home and stuff like that. Worth some reading into.

By Vicki on Monday, November 6, 2006 - 12:39 pm:

I have to agree with kaye here that 9 times out of 10, kids repeat behavior they witness. Are you or dh a screamer? Do either of you have short fuses and bang things around out of frustration? I am not asking any of this to be critical because I was exactly the same way and then wondered why dd was loosing control. LOL It was only when I softened my voice and stopped slamming the doors etc of I was mad that I saw a change in her. It will NOT happen over night, but if you change the stuff they see, they will change also. If none of this applies than forget I said anything. LOL You must be that 1 out of 10!!

By Reds9298 on Monday, November 6, 2006 - 01:51 pm:

Ditto Vicki and Kaye...that was my first thought, that she is seeing this behavior in the house. NOT to criticize, because Lord knows I can feel myself getting angry at Natalie and the more I fight the more she fights without a doubt. Then it just turns into an angry battle that no one wins. Calm, quiet (even when you want to go nuts) always helps in any situation, even as adults! LOL

I also agree with taking something away. It's my philosophy that if you're doing something consistently discipline-wise and you don't see any results, then that method isn't working for your child. JMO. I have a friend with a 2.5yr old boy who has been doing time-outs for several months and she complains that nothing ever changes. For me, that's a sign that time-outs aren't working. Have you removed favorite toys or activities, and TV/video games like Kaye mentioned?

By Pamt on Monday, November 6, 2006 - 10:11 pm:

Again, what specifically have you tried and how has she responded. Maybe we'll have some suggestions if you can give a specific scenario like "I told her to pick up her toys and she.....and I.....and she..."