Oh those 3's...

I love this face. I love this little man. But, today, he is has seriously been testing my patience! I have determined that the 3's are far more terrible than the 2's! At least in the 2's they are not as vocal and do not know how to really hurt your feelings. In the 2's, they are learning what the different words and emotions are. In the 3's they use those words and emotions to their advantage and try to break their parents! Liam has been so back and forth on everything that he makes us feel like there is nothing we can do correctly. We had to hold him down in order to get him dressed this morning because at first he can do it all on his own, then he wants mommy to dress him, then he doesn't want to be dressed at all. One minute he wants to go to daycare, when we get there, he wants to go home. One minute he wants to get the new Wiggles movie at Target; next minute, he is throwing a tantrum in the parking lot, yelling at me to take it back, while people are staring at me, giving me the look like I do not have control over my child. One minute we are at Carl's Jr. getting chicken stars (his request); next minute, yelling at me to send them back, after I've already paid for them, because he doesn't want them. That is just a taste of today. His new trick is to request that we feed him in order for him to finish his meals. A result of seeing is brother being fed by mommy and daddy. There are times that I feel that I am failing as a parent because I feel that I should have more control over my child and he should be respecting and listening to me. But, my many years of child development classes and one-on-one experience with children tell me that I am doing just fine. And I know that I am when my child comes up to me after being disciplined and tells me that he loves me. Just in that moment, when I am being yelled at by my own child and feel that I have no idea what to do in that situation, it feels like everything that I have studied and experienced has flown out the window! In addition to already turning to God for strength and direction, we have started using resources such as The Strong Willed Child, Bringing Up Boys and Tempering Tantrums by James Dobson, not to mention Super Nanny (because those naughty chairs do work most of the time). Don't get me wrong, not all of our days are like today. There are many moments where Liam just makes us smile and he shows how much he loves us and his brother. He really is a good kid, which is probably why the bad days take such a toll on us. I know there is a light at the end of the tunnel, it just feels like it is so far away!