"Calgon take me away!"

Ever have one of those days when you just want to cry?

My daughter is giving me a run for my money. Zach had the terrible two's which to be honest were a breeze. I think the worse thing we had to do with him was work on him with animals. I know he just wanted to play with them but he thought it was funny to push them off the couch or where ever they were purched. Time outs worked with him.

Zoie on the other hand was a breeze through her two's. I was beginning to think this parenting thing wasn't so bad. LOL Then the horrific three's came. YIKES Am I being recruited for that Nanny show? OH yes that has so crossed my mind, but like I want my disgustingly dirty house on TV for the world see, or worse my hiney LOL! She really throws the worst fits I have ever seen, well I've seen some good ones on TV but man where are they coming from? They started with just one on a very rare occasiion, then as time has progressed they seem to creep in more and more.

I've tried time out: I take her to her room, she comes right back out, I put her back she comes right back out {mind you she's screaming at me this entire time}, I put her back, close her door this time and repeat each time she comes out. OY the screaming would someone stop the screaming... please I beg you, no she isn't throwing a fit right now but the screaming just gets to me. I have even gotten down on her level to talk to her. I also tried holding her down while she was kicking and screaming repeating "fits get you nothing" over and over. All that got me was kicked and screamed at to get out, that fit brought me to tears. Which stopped her fit dead in it's tracks, asking to hug me and kiss me. Now some of you may be against spankings but I have even tried a spanking to stop it, all that does is make me feel worse for feeling I had to resort to that form of punishment.

I was talking with Doris about different game plans. Since the above are obviously not working for us. For one the two of them are in this "competition" constantly telling me "boys first" "no girls first" "no boys first" ...repeat until mommy's head spins around. This I am going to take a page out of Doris' parenting book and make a calendar each day with either have a "boy" or a "girl" on it, the one that is on will get first everything for that day. First choice, first to brush teeth, first to do chores etc...obviously they will change as the ages do. I am hoping this will assist me with the fits, this way I can refer to the calendar for those fits that stem from "girls first", "Is it a boy or a girl on the calendar?"

I got these little dollar tree teacher aids that are 2x8 in size that she can stick stickers too, each day give her 6 stickers. Each fit gives mama a sticker, if she ends the day with say three stickers she gets a Dora to put on the sticker card. Once the card is filled up she can go with mama or daddy to the dollar tree and pick out a toy.

Now of course I am such a procrastinator so I haven't done anything yet but yesterday she threw a fit and as she was doing it I went out and got a gogurt and gave Zachy a frozen gogurt and said here you go Zachy you get this because you are being such a good boy. She stopped her fit after a few minutes of more no Zachy doesn't blah blah blah... For the rest of the day she asked for a gogurt and I stood strong and said no you threw a fit, fits get you nothing. Today we managed to go all day with no fits. She got a gogurt after nap today.

Now I ask you, have you had these kinds of fits? If you have how did you attack them?