My Child Will Never...

I was once the person who swore this about so many things. Everytime I seen a child acting out I swore mine would be better. I'd always say that I'd discipline them better and they would know not to cross me.

Lets fast forward to the present day, my child is horrible. You know the kid you see screaming at the top of their lungs with a frazzled looking parent? I'm that parent...

Yesterday we chose to take B to a live Seasame Street concert courtesy of the USO. I knew before we left the house that it probably wouldn't go well. We rounded up some hotwheels and sippy cups and off we headed. As soon as we arrived B was ready to go go go. He wanted to touch the poster with Elmo (not a huge deal) and refused to step away for people taking pictures. He had more meltdowns in the 30 minutes we waited to be seated then I was willing to count. B's meltdowns aren't just crying, that I could deal with. He screams as loud as he can and refuses to budge. Every time Chance would attempt to lift him he would become a dead weight. Finally Chance snatched him up. We hesitate on doing this because it truly makes things worse. He pinches Chance's faces and claws at his ears as hard ad he can. If a toy is in his hand he throws it. After our numerous melt downs we were finally let in. It truly didn't look up. He threw his hotwheels, he escaped, he screamed.... the list is endless.

My child is that horribly behaved child you see. I always chalked it up to the parents not disciplining but now I understand that isn't always the case. We are not ones to sit and let B act like he does. We do time outs, we take toys/special privileges, and we do spank him. None of these things help or even phase him. I will sit with him in time out and he attempts to claw any part of me he can reach. When we spank him he doesn't even cry or he swats back at us. Taking toys only makes the whole situation even worse.

As a parent I spend much of my day frustrated. B never slows down and it's only getting worse. I'm embarrassed to take him in public because of all the judging looks I recieve. As parents, Chance and I do what we can to try to calm B down. Our efforts go unnoticed often but we do try. Some days I just want to sit and cry. I never dreamed my kid would be so incredibly testy. My stress levels are out of the roof with him at times. I spend a good amount of time looking for answers as to why he is so conflicted with activities. I know most will say 'terrible twos' but honestly, I feel like he is overly terrible. It's almost like he can't control his emotions and still hasn't developed coping mechanisms. We try our best to talk to him and calm him down but it's useless and goes unnoticed.

Next time you say my child won't do A, B, or C, please remember all children are different. Don't blame the parent if a kid is acting out; It isn't always their fault. These past few months have taught me this and now I just nod and give a slight smile. Some parents truly appreciate the understanding gestures over the judgmental glares.