Full of emotion, you may see your previously sweet baby, (but now seemingly tyrannical toddler) go from laughing and happy, to surprised, puzzled, then disgusted, and finally angry when you are too slow in getting the Mac and Cheese out of the microwave! And maybe TSK (that special kid) hurled at you the sippy cup with force to rival the best MLB pitcher!  And all of those emotions occurred in less than 2 minutes.

Welcome to Toddlerhood and the time when emotions reign, and everyone else is…well, miserable and grumpy due to your  “Drama Queen or King”. Here are some tips; Parents can build a framework for skill development, leading to independence.

1. The basis of all frameworks is patience; easier said than done when sippy cups are flying past your ears.
2. There are 5 basic emotions– learn to read TSK’s and study which ones to intervene with quickly.
3.  Give TSK time to respond.  TSK’s brain cells don’t have a lot of insulation yet so they are slower to respond;  in other words; pick your battles and CHILL OUT.
4.  TSK’s attention span is only a little more than a minute, so don’t nag; be short and to the point when you give directions.
5. Be sure TSK isn’t hungry or tired when you go to the store; if you do, expect a “Noisy Tragedy”, of epic proportions that would even impress Shakespeare!
6. Imagine what TSK knows. Sometimes we assume TSK knows what we know, which is flat out wrong. After all, he hasn’t been around as long as you have.

Again to very loosely paraphrase Shakespeare, “Give thy toddler your ear, but less of your voice”…. but always… a hug, I’m Gene