Tantrums 101 - Part II

Oh of course there is a part II.  That little episode couldn’t have been all that was in store for me.  Eventually I needed to clean up the house so I cranked up the music and proceeded to go from room to room while Mason ran around like a crazy person. 

It’s nearing bedtime and I need to get him changed and through bed time routine.  He’s hyper.  Hard to talk to a hyper toddler.  I chased him through rooms to put him into jammies but remembered that I needed to put hydro-cortisone cream on his eczema which was hugely flared up when I got him on Monday.  We are day three of treatment and it’s 75% gone.  So I get a jammy top on him and go to change his diaper.  I get the diaper pulled off and while he’s running around half nude…dinky exposed, he goes straight into his playhouse.  I go in to get him and he bonks me on the forehead with a toy car. 

Now I have to get angry, this behaviour is definitely not acceptable.  I won’t spank him though, I just don’t feel its necessary nor the right type of punishment for hitting.  I try to put on a super mad mommy face.  He is laughing, which makes this more difficult as I’m trying to convey that he has ‘hurt’ me.  I pull him towards me trying to get a reaction and I say that he hurt Mommy.  “I’m sorry” he says but I’m not really convinced.

He starts to laugh harder, I lay him on the floor trying to get him to look me in the eyes (something he always avoids).  I pin his arms down to stop him from flailing, he’s laughing hysterically now.  I hover over him and look him in the eyes.  God he’s cute.  This is hard.  I try not to giggle.  He thinks this whole exchange is hilarious.

Mason! That was not….

My pants feel warm.  I look down…he peed on me.

He has urine on his leg as well.

Lovely.

Not sure now what to do.

So much for disciplining him.  I need to diaper him before the rest of it comes out.

I shed my pants and go to fetch his diaper and shorts.  He’s taken off down the hall.  Nude bum running towards the bedroom.

I don’t know whether to laugh or cry.  Not the first time I’ve been peed on him.

It’s now bedtime which I don’t want to tie in with a time out.  The moment has passed and there is no point continuing with yelling him.  He knows what he did was wrong.

I am short with him, get his teeth brushed and off to bed he goes.  No story.  I tell him I love him and sweet dreams.  The door is shut and the wails of “mommy” proceed.  NOW I’ve got his attention and he’s upset.  He wanted a bed time story and cuddles and I really want to go in there and give it to him but if I resume our routine like nothing happened, he’s not going to get the point.

Am I being too hard on a 2 year old?  The tears are the crocodile variety.  I know he’s not terribly upset. 

I’m exhausted.  It’s 8:02pm, it will be at least an hour by the time he’s calmed down.  Longer if I don’t manually calm him.  The ‘let him cry it out’ doesn’t work on Mason.

Sigh.

This is where being a single parent is really tough.  I need my partner to help me out, reinforce my discipline methods.

For a moment I let myself cry, give in to the moment and then I’m off to calm my angry son, sing a song and let him drift off to sleep in the comfort of Mommy’s arms.

Deep breath in…deep breath out.

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