Anyone find 3.5 year a difficult age - will 4 be better?

[milkyman]

The whinging, irational requests, moodiness - they are like teenagers. What is four lik

Bump

hollow laughter

I do remember saying of eldest that 4 is when they turn into people you can communicate with, reason with, spend enjoyable time with. Apparently youngest, now 4, didn't get that memo.

Yea 4 isn't great either!

IMO they get better after starting school!

Actually that would be a lie! After a YEAR at school

Sorry, but DD was so delightful at 3.5 that I really thought that I'd love her to stay that age forever, but then she turned 4. Proper little madam!

Honestly, every child is different and every parent too. Your DS's nightmare 3 may turn into a joyful 4. Good luck.

It doesn't get easier it just gets different. I have two teenagers and in many ways they're harder work than when they were little.

My 3.5yr old is like this. She can be delightful then if she's not getting her own way wails like a banshee.
It's an endless series of negotiations, and she goes out of her way to annoy her older siblings which leads to me mediating.

I'm hoping 4 might bring the age of reason

If its any consolation my nearly teenager is much easier to deal with than my 3.5 year old :)

That said they do all seem easier once they get settled at school and mature a little bit. Sadly some are always difficult tho... (dd1 (7) grrrr)

Just a fist bump from me ON am in the same boat ds1 bless him is 3.5 and oh my dear God. ....light of my life but my good God he is arguing all the time , determined to kill himself by jumping off various surface and has developed a vendetta against the bath !! He's a really wonderful kind caring big brother and then will try to sit on the cat

I don't care if it's true or not believing things will be different at four is keeping me sane

Watching with interest.

So far DD is better at 3.5 still bloody difficult though than she was at 3 and was better at 3 than 2.5 ... so I'm hoping that 4 continues the upwards trend.

Great...

My almost 4 year old is an absolute joy, been that way since about 2 when he started talking properly and he's just getting better the more he can articulate and the conversations we have melt me!

My two year old who can't communicate like her brother could is incredibly trying (I adore her beautiful little self!) but I can't wait for the words to start and to be able to reason with her. She had a meltdown because I sat down this morning, because she couldn't reach her coat, because I looked at her and then again when I kissed her head after she motioned me to. I'm praying it gets better for her haha!

My almost 4 year old is an absolute joy, been that way since about 2 when he started talking properly and he's just getting better the more he can articulate and the conversations we have melt me!

My two year old who can't communicate like her brother could is incredibly trying (I adore her beautiful little self!) but I can't wait for the words to start and to be able to reason with her. She had a meltdown because I sat down this morning, because she couldn't reach her coat, because I looked at her and then again when I kissed her head after she motioned me to. I'm praying it gets better for her haha!

Oh god, yes. Dd1 is just 3.5 and has been a challenge since 2.5/3 really. But is definitely worse now!

I often wonder if it's me not knowing how to handle her, not being patient enough etc. I love her dearly but I also really struggle with her sometimes. It's the deliberate defiance and the way everything goes in one ear and out the other that gets to me the most. This is definitely the most difficult age so far.

planningwithkids.com/2009/11/17/characteristics-of-three-and-a-half-year-old-behavior/

We call them "the whinging threes" in our house. Four is nice though.

askmoxie.org/blog/2014/1/15/35-is-a-lousy-age

Interesting articles linked above

We call it the 'threenagers' here, because shes like a moody teenager at times! Especially when we have guests (people she knows, family etc) and she refuses to say hello or make eye contact tend to just ignore her when she does that now because making an issue of it makes her do it more.

Really interesting article, lots of things really resonated with me, Hard to remember at times that it's just a developmental stage and not a reflection on us as parents or the child. Will be showing it to dp later too.

With both mine any age was better than the terrible threes. I guess it's what you mind most: I can cope with the argumentativeness and late nights of teenagers far better than the whininess of a clingy threenager.