Wednesday, June 30, 2010

Help! How do you Discipline a Toddler?

For the past couple of months my son, Joshua, has developed a whole new attitude.  Now this isn't particularly surprising since he turned 2 in May,but I am having the hardest time knowing how to discipline him in some circumstances.  Don't get me wrong, he's a very sweet boy; he gives kisses, hugs, and always says thanks you, but sometimes he acts like, well, a 2 year old. Since this is my first, any advice for handling the following situations?

  • Picky Eating - My son is the pickiest eater I have ever met! He likes most breakfast food, but will only eat a handful of other things for lunch and dinner (PBJ, chicken nuggets, tomato soup, toast, crackers, etc.) He will not eat a single fresh fruit or vegetable, but will still eat some as pureed baby food. We recently decided to start withholding other food unless he eats a few bites of what we give him - his pediatrician says he won't starve himself, but I guess we'll see.  Do you have picky eaters? What have you found successful?
  • Throwing Things or Hitting - Sometimes when Joshua doesn't get his way he will swing his arms and hit my wife or I.  This we immediately address and tell him its a "No-No." He also has begun to throw his toys that weren't meant to be thrown, Hotwheels cars in particular.  I feel that we do a good job with this, compared to other areas.  He usually will stop, but if he does it again he will get a timeout...Super Nanny style (which he have found to be very effective). What else has worked for you?
  • Ignoring - Especially when I need to change his diaper - I ask him to come lay down, but he will completely ignore me!  I find that I just repeat myself over and over again, and when I try to be stern, I feel like I am yelling (Where's the line there anyway?).  I know some people do the "I'm going to count to 3" technique, but we have not implemented this yet...any one recommend it? What else works?

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