Terrible twos / threenager support thread

[Belleende]

Hello all,

Thought I would start this and see where is goes. I am mum to 2 DDS. One 7 weeks and one 2.5. currently on mat leave.

My DD1 has always been a lively high energy kid, but has lately been incredibly challenging. Last week it took me 1.5 hours to get her into her clothes and out the door. I started a thread here and got great support.

There are lots of separate threads with good advice on, but I thought it might be helpful to have a go to place for help support and advice on dealing with the daily challenges of toddler wrangling.

My current challenges include, how to get dressed without a drama, how to manage transitions without meltdowns, to nap or not to nap, how to maintain sanity when toddler asks for a bath and then refuses to get in it, how to keep it light and playful when you are feeling just short of murderous.

Say howdy if you think this might be useful and we can go from there.

Snuggly, as my dm always says to me after such days, you're not Mother Bloody Teresa. (That's a direct quote, btw).

We are only human and we get wound up and shouty sometimes and nearly crash into innocent members of the public because we're trying to peel out of the carpark, or is that just me and that's ok as long as we don't actually crash. Tomorrow, we pick ourselves up and start again.

Have a , or on me.

Hi all. I have a 22 month old DD who is hitting the terrible 2s eight weeks early! Tantrums have started (including lying on the floor/sofa wailing, kicking and bashing head) refusal to get dressed/have stinking nappy changed and flinging food then whinging because said food is flung!

Oh, and I'm expecting number 2. God help me

Blindspot my DD hit full tantrum at about that age too. She's 2.5 now and the tantrums are a bit easier only because I'm not so WTF every time they happen!

Does anyone elses toddler insist on watching the exact same things on TV over and over? Not sure if this is a weird quirk of DDs. She is obsessed with one Netflix cartoon TV series which has a soundtrack like a Nintendo game that drives us absolutely mental. I introduced her to her first Disney film last week - I have now sat through Tangled about 48 times.

It's currently 5.30am and she has woken me up just saying 'watch the hair lady?' Don't have strength to say no.

snuggly I started this thread after just such a day. I didn't shout, I just completely withdrew in utter defeat and felt completely useless and that my parenting tank was utterly empty. Was even questioning the sanity of having DD2.

We all have days like this, we will all have more days like this, but as long as we are still fighting the ship won't sink and we will turn out some decent human beings.

Tomorrow is another day, it will be full of the same crap as today, but we are dealing with toddlers anything could happen.

wolves we are in the middle of Andy's dinosaur adventure mania, not Andy's baby animals or even Andy's prehistoric adventures, just Andy's Dinosaur Adventures.

Lanky streak of piss. He is fecking everywhere.

Belle and wolves, our toddler TV viewing is restricted to:

Andy's Dinosaur Adventures (or Prehistoric Adventures - but not baby animals - oh no!)
Brum
Postman Pat
Twirlywoos

And of course Peppa sodding Pig

They will also watch the occasional Wallace and Gromit, for some reason. But mainly I have "PIG!" or "BUM!" (not quite got the hang of 'Brum'!) shouted at me a lot...

I quite like Andy though. I mean he's no Sean Bean but I'd far rather watch him than Daddy Pig!

Hope you are feeling better now Snuggly? And I've definitely been there - ended up having prosecco and chocolate for dinner one evening as the children had so utterly destroyed me between them. I think that was a low point!

Sounds pretty ace to me ruby

Does anyone elses toddler insist on watching the exact same things on TV over and over?
Have you seen the advert with the emoticons on for Three network and their new phone? Has a unicorn in it. None vernal toddler can sign "more" and "unicorn". I rewound ot 6 times then pretended it had gone and placated woth Bubble Guppies.

Then later he stole my apricots, put a full one in his mouth (won't actually eat one because they are wet inside) then rolled them off his head into the remote control box. Repeatedly. Cute but odd is my child.

Did I mention I went to Bella Italia and then to a movie with my best mate and no one stuck their fingers in my food or licked my food or stole my fork.

Arse. Day off to a bad start. Baby not slept very well still unsettled, toddler awake for the day at 4.30 and now in full whinge. I've had I reckon less than 2hrs kip. This is going to be a tough day.

Thanks everyone. I'd like to say I had a great night's sleep but the dts both have colds so that didn't happen! I am feeling a bit more positive today though and wondering if I could have prosecco and chocolate for breakfast

It's Octonauts here. We all know A LOT about marine wildlife now.

Re dressing... A tip that sometimes worked when I tried to dress a recalcitrant two year old... Lay out two complete outfits, eg two vests, two jumpers and two pairs of trousers etc. Then, let the LO choose which top, which trousers etc. More than once he wore the lot - at his own choice. Being able to choose did sometimes (I stress sometimes) help. I once took DS to nursery in his PJs - after laughing at first he demanded his clothes be put on. By the time we arrived he was yelling to be dressed. Understanding nursery staff calmly (I wasn't) ushered us to the loo. Never had to do it again. I also had his baby sister in a sling. Long time ago now.

upthewolves we would be watching Hey Duggee every minute of the day if DD had her way. Lost count of how many times we've seen eac episode! Marginally better than her last obsession of Bing and Teletubbies though....

Dressing isn't too much of a battle for us yet. We've always made sure DD is dressed before going downstairs for breakfast and TV etc so avoids a bit of a mad rush. Bath time however is absolutely horrendous. She screams like she's been murdered and tries to climb out covered in shampoo and soap.

Hope today isn't too bad Belle.

I'm sure someone must have said this but the arrival of your new baby will definitely have caused some issues. It did with my son. He's now 4 and just no trouble and a pleasure to be around. Meanwhile, my 21 month old.....argh

So no words of advice really, just hang on in there (keep telling myself that)

Bath hater here too. Its like he's being flailed alive

Can I join please? Have both! Almost 2 yr old and 3.4 yr old boys. Crazy but cute!

Is anyone else's little one still waking up for a night feed? My daughter is nearly 2 and feel like she should have stopped by now haha!

Jelly sounds like you are busy!

To be honest I wouldn't mind Hey Duggee all day. I love it!

Yeah, I'd be fine with Hey Duggee. DDs current favourite is True and The Rainbow Kingdom. If you've never heard of it I'm jealous.

Just listening to DH doing bathtime. DD has accidentally pushed the plug to release the water, but thinks DH has done it. He's copping a motherload of tantrum and can just hear "It was you! I'm pushing it back in!" drowned out by furious screaming.

Sometimes I love that I get to sit on the sofa and breastfeed. Ha!

I'm on my 5th just-turned-threenager (with an 8 month old younger brother, so he's not even my last!) and he is dynamite. Either I've forgotten that the other 4 were also batshit crazy at this age (or blocked it from my memory, PTSD stylee) or he really is a...ahem 'spirited child'...we affectionately call him 'The Tiny Terrorist'. At the moment he very much enjoys being naked all the time & strips off whenever & wherever he can. He painted the dog yesterday (I don't mean a tiny bit of paint either - he properly painted her...and the big softie let him), he put 11 toilet rolls into the toilet & was bringing snow INSIDE to build a snowman when I came downstairs from getting the baby up from a nap. He delights in it all & cackles maniacally when told that he shouldn't do insert any given thing out of about 17,000 things that he could be doing on any given day...he is breaking me. It's just as well he's cute.

flutter 6 kids! Wowsers. I am the youngest of four, all born within 7 years. My mum worked full time as a teacher and my dad was properly old school, never changed a nappy or did a load of washing. I am in awe. 2 is more than enough for me.

A lack of sleep and my super mum routine is out the window. I can't be arsed with stickers and charts and timers. I just want to sit on the sofa eating biscuits drinking tea and feeding my new born.

My one is in his buggy with CBEEBIES and a dummy that tastes of teething gel because we just changed his feeding button and he's miserable. Need to take him for a walk nap poor baby. I hate the mean for their own good parenting crap which is utterly shitty and which I can't experience for him :(

I think I'm coming out of this, just turned 3 yr old and 4.4 yr old and on the whole they talk to me when they need things and listen when I answer them.

So hang on in their everyone, it does seem to get better.

Your poor DS Sleeping, hope he enjoys his nap. On the bright side wow, a movie and a meal without anyone demanding your food or telling you they'd done a poo?!

Flutter I cannot imagine having more than these two DCs - always thought I wanted three but now imagining the newborn sleepless stage fills me with horror although if my two had been better sleepers it wouldn't have been so bad, or if OH had been more supportive. LOL at your poor dog - my cat does a runner every time she sees these two!