telling off a 16mo - how long do you stay obviously displeased with them?

[TutterIckOrTreat]

ds tonight insisted on slapping my face quite hard despite being told no. i stopped story time and put him straight in his cot. i muttered the usual "night night, mummy loves you, sleep well, etc" under my breath rather than in a snuggly way, and now feel bad. but if i'd put him down then immediately been lovey with him, would he even know he'd been disciplined?

I think putting to bed while still cross is bound to make you both feel unhappy. Could you maybe have put him down in the cot for a minute, stopped the story, gone out of the room to regain your temper then come back in and finished the story?

want to go up and give him a kiss now but he's gone to sleep

It is really hard, isn't it, I am having this sort of thing a lot with my two at the moment. There's no denying it, it just genuinely upset me when they atomise their dinner deliberately all over the floor, block the toilet up just for a laugh, or otherwise wind me up on purpose. Mummies have feelings too! I tend to do what Franny is suggesting and just get out of their company for a couple of minutes, while telling myself "It's not their fault, they don't really mean to upset you, they are just toddlers having fun" and I go back when I'm calmer.

Oh, go and give him a kiss anyway, it will make you feel better

Oh go and give him a kiss Tutter

or blow one from the doorway

I have done this myself tbh, sometimes I lose my rag just at bedtime and my store of patience is absolutely zero. But if you ask what I think the right thing to do is, I would use whatever discipline you would at another time of day, make it up, then continue bedtime as before.

a good question. my 27mo shows no understanding when hes 'told off' and i do wonder if theres any piont even doing it...

my 40mo gets upset when told off and in doing so is distracted from the 'bad' act that got him told. so i wonder about effectiveness of telling him too... anyone wise clever and all knowing fancy coming round my gaff to show me the ropes?

i was no help at all there. soz.

i just did, thanks greeny and franny

not sure my "i love you"s registered as he was zonked, but i do feel a bit better

it breaks my heart when i've been firm with him, but i guess he's getting to the age where he needs to learn just a couple of basic social skills

like not making mummy cry