The funny thing about having an almost-3-year-old is that they are easily manipulated.
And I wonder where she learns her techniques. Geez...some role model I am.
Toddlers really get a kick out of people laughing at them. So, if they do something and people laugh, they'll continue to do it. It's my favorite.
Like the time Jayna was speaking gibberish and I asked her if she was speaking German. She replied with, "YOU'RE a German, mommy!!!" Like I insulted her and she was retorting. It made me laugh so hard that I couldn't contain myself. As soon as she saw Chris and I laugh, she called people "Germans" for a week.
And I'm sure I got looks behind my back in public.
But do you know how exhausting it would be to explain all the things my kid blurts out and/or does in public??
Like that time she schooled that lady at Sam's Club. Nothing I could've said to that lady would've made anything better. So I just had to let it go.
I do occasionally see people look our way with a confused grimace on their faces when Jayna says certain things. I think it's kind of funny. People are soooo judgemental. :)
And now we're to the actual story:
A couple of weeks ago, we went to Olive Garden to celebrate Chris' mom's birthday. There were a group of 10 of us. We had a really good time! Toward the end, my father-in-law (who LOVES to talk politics regardless of the occasion or the audience) started talking about...politics. All of us knew it wasn't the time or the place. I leaned over and whispered in Jayna's ear, "Tell pappaw, 'Don't talk about politics.'" She quietly said it, but just one time. We all laughed. I was sure it was just over at that point.
Two days later, I was putting Jayna's hair in a ponytail in preparation for school. She would NOT hold still. I used her hair to turn her head and told her to hold still. After I was finished, she turned around, looked at me through tears and said, "Mommy...don't talk polly chicks."
I had NO idea what she was saying. At first, I though she was telling me I needed to aplogize...to which i was saying, "Absolutely NOT!! You wouldn't hold still." She repeated herself several times, but I started to ignore her so she'd stop with her fit.
This happened over and over again over the course of the next 3 days. I'd get stern with her or raise my voice and she'd say, "Don't talk polly chicks to me, mommy!!"
One night when we were at the dinner table, I said the word "politics" to Chris. We weren't really talking about politics, I just said the word in conversation. That got her attention. "She looked at me, very seriously, and said sternly, "Don't you talk polly chicks to me, MOMMY!!! And not to daddy either!!"
And then it occurred to me.
I was pretty sure wine was going to come out of my nose from attempting to hold in the laughter. I didn't bother really explaining anything to her because I knew she wouldn't understand. I thought the phrase would just die and she'd forget.
But...we laughed at her. Twice at that point. And the phrase will NOT die.
We were at Target yesterday getting some new clothes and shoes for Jayna. Everytime we go to Target, she asks to look at the toys. She rarely asks for us to buy her anything, but she just likes to go back there and look at all the toys. We oblige because we have a good kid.
She was riding in the cart when I showed her some sandals that I wanted her to try on. She started to throw a fit. Well, she needs new sandals, so fit or not, she was GOING to try on those sandals.
I started to take her shoe off and she inevitably started screaming like I was ripping her leg off. I continued. It's important for kids to know that even if they embarrass you in public that they STILL WON'T WIN.
"But parenting isn't about winning, Danielle!! You should know that by now. Jayna's nearly 3 years old."
And the douche who just said that clearly has no children. Parenting IS about winning. It is about having a stronger will than a tiny person who doesn't care who she embarrasses while throwing a fit, what she breaks while throwing a fit, who she hurts while throwing a fit, or what the consequences of said fit will be.
It's all about winning. Trust me.
So, her screaming and kicking and throwing stuff out of the cart continued...and I continued to wrestle her foot into the new sandal. She kicked off the shoe she was wearing when I undid the strap and it landed somewhere about 30 feet away. I left it. I even kept a straight face and didn't yell or raise my voice. I just kept at the sandal.
After I got it onto her foot, she continued to throw the fit.
"I don't like you mommy!! Leave my shoes alone! I don't want to try on that new shoe!!! DON'T YOU TALK POLLY CHICKS TO ME MOMMY!!!! THAT'S MEAN!!!!!! NO POLLY CHICKS!!!"
That's when I smirked and chuckled a little. I couldn't hold it in anymore. A pregnant woman was there registering with her baby daddy . They looked over my way when they heard the "polly chicks" statement...with that confused grimace. As if to say, "What are you doing to your child and why is she telling you to not talk politics? You must be a horrible parent."
Aren't they in for a rude awakening.
I'm sure the people in electronics could hear her. And I didn't care. I said to her, "Now. I tried the new shoe on. And you are still okay. There was absolutely NO need for that fit because you know where it got you?? We don't get to go look at the toys now."
I'm not sure I've ever seen the look on her face at that moment. She got it.
She understood what the consequence was. And she stopped her fit. She was a complete angel for the remainder of the trip. That earned her back her "flushy" (slushy) and she was happy again.
You have to give a little. That's another "Tip for Stellar Parenting" from the book I'm going to write someday. :)
She didn't ask to go look at the toys again. She knew that was a lost cause.
I asked her later when we were at the check-out why she threw the fit. She looked at me as serious as she could and said, "Cause you talked polly chicks to me mommy. That not nice."
This one's NEVER gonna die.
No comments:
Post a Comment