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Parenting

For free parenting resources please check out the Early Years Alliance's Family Corner.

Really struggling with relationship and 2 year old

4 replies

Lemonsugarcake · 22/02/2026 20:31

Apologies for the dramatic title of my post and not sure what I am hoping to achieve but really just need some advice and reassurance and not sure where to turn.

My husband and I have a 2 year old daughter who up until recently has been been such a joy to be around. Her first year was hard as she wasn't a great sleeper and although we had planned to have children at some point she was unexpected and I had taken the morning after pill after unprotected sex so getting pregnant at that point was a bit of a shock. None the less we got on with it and although my husband found it a lot harder than me and there were some very difficult points we got through the first year and came out the other side.

Last year ages 1 -2 she has slept pretty well and has been a really sweet happy joyful child. She has eaten literally anything which I think made me feel really proud and never really cried at all. I knew that I shouldn't rest my laurels on this and that it wasn't anything that we were doing but just her age etc but I guess deep down I felt really proud of her that she was just so lovely and easy.

Anyway fast forward turning 2 and its been a total nightmare of constant tantrums and refusing food. I am just about managing but my husband can't cope with it at all and gets really frustrated with her. I know it's all normal for her age but it's making us both so miserable. My husband has a very full on job and I increased my working days from 3 to 4 in September last year and have a big work deadline coming up - I reckon she senses something is up. She was also previously happy to put to bed and spend time with either of us but the past few weeks is in a mummy only phase.

My husband isn't coping at all and gets really miserable and snappy when my daughter is like this. It keeps on making me think of the fact that I got pregnant about 2 years sooner than we had planned to have a child and that he isn't really read for family life. I know that he just needs to suck it up and get on with life having a toddler but I don't know if there is a way we can both manage to carry on without this change in my daughters behaviour making us totally miserable. Is there some books we can read about toddlers which will help - I did read positive discipline which was quite useful.

The constant arguing between myself and my husband and his low mood is making me think god I don't know how to get through this which I know sounds dramatic but it does seem possible these tantrums etc might continue for another few years.

OP posts:
Lighterandbrighter · 22/02/2026 20:39

So if you had her two years earlier than the ideal plan, he would still have a child now. So he's being a dick.
She's two. She's probably got big molars coming in and a sore mouth and doesn't want food. It's not an issue. Give her safe food and something on the side that it won't irritate you that she doesn't eat.
You had an easy run with her, but you were proud of the wrong things. What she ate and how she slept didn't define her. Be proud of her attempts to get dressed or make jokes, and see that she's frustrated and having a tantrum because she really really wants to be more competent than she is. She's ambitious. Be proud of that.

RubyFatball · 22/02/2026 20:43

It’s easy when things are going well. It’s when things are hard that people tend to show their true colours. If this man/the relationship can’t manage with a few toddler tantrums, how’s it going to be in future when you hit other new issues? Can you work together as a team?

Lemonsugarcake · 22/02/2026 20:52

Thanks yes I didn't mean I was only proud of her because she was eating well - more that I felt that we may not be perfect but we were managing ok as she is such a lovely sweet happy child. I am a nurse and I think used to managing my emotions and staying calm as I work in ICU so the toddler stuff and the lack of sleep was ok for me. But he just isn't very patient at all when she's not sleeping and now again with the toddler tantrums. So I honestly don't know what to do as I am now managing two people. But he is an amazing dad most of the time and I want to work on our relationship and help him learn to cope with his emotions even though its not my job!

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SunshineMel678 · 23/02/2026 12:02

Not sure what makes him an "amazing" dad. We are all amazing when rested, someone else is doing all the hard work and all we have to do is play with a beautiful angelic child.

You can't change him or help him learn anything. He's a grown man.

You need to accept whether you can live with him as he is now.

Parenting actually gets harder over time. Children push boundaries, it's what they do.

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