Needing a Parenting Reboot

I don't think I am "supposed to" admit this, but I have not been enjoying parenting my 2 year old lately.  Everything requires more talking, more energy, and more time than it has in the past.  If you have a toddler, you likely know what I mean. 

On particularly "special" days things to go this way:

He wants a snack?  First I have to decide WHAT he wants to eat.  I usually give 2-3 options. Then he decides WHERE we are going to have the snack (upstairs, downstairs, outside, inside, at the table, in a snack trap), then we have to decide if he is going to HELP or not, then we have to decide what CONTAINER to put it in, and finally there tends to be a particular way that he wants it prepared (banana in or out of the peel, cheese cubed or in strips, apple cut up or whole).

Take this same level of decision making and apply it to every.single.thing I do all.day.long. And you have a typical tough day in my home.  

Some of you are probably thinking that you would never give your child so much control.  You are probably thinking that you would pick a snack, hand it to your child, and that would be it.  Either you don't have a toddler or if you do, you are the luckiest person on the face of the earth.  Don't get me wrong.  Everyday isn't like this.  But there are days, man, are there days, when he is taking being a "terrible two" seriously, when it is way easier to give him a voice in the decision making than to deal with the tantrum afterward. 

I was really starting to get down on myself.  I wasn't looking forward to playing with him and especially not looking forward to playing trains or cars for the 50th time that day and I thought that made me a bad mom.  But then I realized something.  I don't actually have to like everything that he likes.  I know that sounds obvious when I say it, but it really hadn't occurred to me before.  Part of my job as a mom is to play with my kid and to love it, right?   Not exactly.  I think I should want to spend time with my kid.  I think that most of the time I can find activities that don't drive either one of us insane.  And the rest of the time?  Well I don't have a solution for the rest of the time.  Grin and bear it, I suppose.
  
So given my level of exhaustion with these particular type of days, there have been several moments lately where I have not been too proud of my parenting skills.  I have snapped at him when I was trying to finish something and he got in the way.  I have spent too much time on Facebook when I should have been playing with him.  I have told him "in a minute" too many times so that I could finish what I was doing, even if it wasn't that important or crucial that I finish it then.  Finally, I have had too many days where I am overly grateful for nap time and bedtime. 

I knew that the only way out of this rut was to look at the things in a new way...focusing on the things that were going well.  So I started writing down the things I am proud of, with regard to parenting  It was an amazing experience.  At first, I stated the easy ones.

• I remember to tell him that I love him throughout the day (and not just when he has done something good).
• I give him hugs and kisses every time the opportunity arises.

Then I started really thinking about the things we do on a fairly regular basis and that I view as good decisions as a parent.

• I model playing creatively and I encourage him to play along.   
• We go outside almost every chance we get.  
• I include him in the things I do around the house. 
• I don't forget to get really silly with him at least a couple of times a day.   
• I give him jobs so that he feels useful and experiences the success in accomplishing a task.
• I have nurtured his love for reading by having books accessible to him and we read books together several times a day.
• I make him clean up his toys (most of the time).
• I have begun to feed him real food as often as I can (95% of the time).  How can I let him grow up without goldfish crackers?
•  Sometimes, even when we are in a rush, we stop everything and just cuddle.   My favorite time to do this is getting in and out of the car.  Why?  Because it makes a remarkable difference in reducing my crankiness in those rushed moments.

Then I started thinking about the tough things I do as a parent...

• When he goes into tantrum mode, most of the time I remember to meet him where he is.  I give him hugs, use kid language to describe what I think he wants, get him to take a deep breath, and then we talk about what we need to do instead.  
• When I sense a struggle coming on, I give him two-three choices so he feels like he has some control.  
• When he starts to whine for something, I remind him to "try again" and ask me the correct way.   
• I tell him "no", I tell him "yes", and I tell him "ABSOLUTELY".  However, I also tell him, "in a minute", "after I finish ___", and "maybe later" so he begins to learn about being patient.  
• We have found a discipline system that works for us (right now) and is predictable for him.  

 Finally, I reflected on my actions specifically.  What am I doing to model being a quality human being?

• I exercise regularly and he is part of that routine.
• I model using "please" and "thank you" and remind him to use them as well.
• I love my husband and we are appropriately affectionate in front of the kids.
• I am not afraid to show him a full range of emotions, but I be sure to use words to describe how I am feeling so that he understands.  I use these opportunities to model how to recover from a bad mood or how to embrace the happy times. 
• It took me a while, but I found hobbies that didn't involve him. I think it is important that he sees that I have interests outside of being mom. 
• I admit when I have made a mistake.

If you compare the moments where I have been a less than stellar parent lately with this list, would you describe me as a good parent or a poor one?  Are we allowed to have moments as moms and dads where we don't have our A game on?  I suppose that is for each person to choose for themselves, but I have decided that I need to cut myself some slack.  I do very few things poorly, but a whole heck of a lot of things really well.  I AM a good mom and now?  I know it.

Please Make The Crying Stop

Okay friends, I need some help.  I am really struggling with Superman's crying/screaming fits lately. I know how to handle his tantrums when he isn't getting his way, so I want to be clear that this is not my issue.

My issue is around when he wakes up.  Most of the time it is after his second nap, but it has happened first thing in the morning and after the first nap a couple times.  It was happening just a couple times a week, but the frequency has increased to an almost daily occurrence and today it happened twice (morning and afternoon nap).

He will be okay when I walk into the room, but then when I pick him up or sit with him in the rocking chair, he freaks out.  I thought it began because he knew that a diaper change was next and he hates diaper changes.  But after changing up the routine and waiting to change the diaper, he still is freaking out. 

I tried making the wake up routine slow and comforting.  I didn't turn the light on right away, tried rocking and cuddling with him, but he still freaks out. 

He doesn't seem to be in pain, but will arch his back and kick his legs.  He doesn't want me to hold him and pushes me away, but if I put him down he freaks out more. 

I have found two things that will end the screaming.  Sesame Street and putting him in the stroller and going for a walk.  If it is raining or I am exhausted (or I have a tear stained face like today), I opt for Sesame Street even though I hate that he is watching T.V.  It isn't an instant cure, we have to cuddle for awhile (which I love) and then he eventually will crawl out of my lap and play while watching.  We usually watch for about 10 minutes and then all is good.  I know 10 minutes isn't a huge deal, but I hate the idea of creating a pattern that television fixes our problems.

If I opt for the walk, he calms down pretty quick.  I thought it was just a change of scenery, but if I just walk outside with him he won't stop crying.  It is a fine solution to our problem and most of the time don't mind using it to get him to stop.

I just want to stop them from happening at all.  I read a post over at Mommy Shorts yesterday about "Taking Down the Tantrum" and I was grateful for the advice that was given.  However, the advice doesn't really apply to this situation....or does it? Am I somehow giving in to what he wants therefore things are getting worse?

I am not kidding when I say that I am pleading for your help.  I really want you to leave me a comment and give me advice on what might be causing the tantrum when I go to get him from a nap and what I might do to extinguish it.  Please.