Thursday, July 8, 2010

Testing 1, 2, 3

Is this a test?! Something to remember about a child that likes to test you, push your buttons, throws gauntlets at you, etc...is well that they like to test you, push your buttons, and throw gauntlets at you! And I have one of these types of children in my house!

Just tonight, again with the getting out of bed, throwing toys, turning on the light and turning off the sound machine...and then taking off all her clothes...all to get a reaction out of me. And what did I do? Nothing! I stayed cool, calm and collected. I did take things up a notch and told her (in a cool, calm, collected way) that I won't be opening her door until she picks up all the toys, gets dress, turns the sound on and lights off. And again, she did it right away. The one thing I have learned with testers like this, is that it WILL get worse before it gets better! I promise you that and I have personally experienced the "worse" before the "better". Also it is very, very important to stay consistent and don't forget about being cool, calm and collected!

I think it was in the book "The Well Behaved Child" by John Rosemond (I read so many books that I have a hard time keeping them all straight...) but he actually says not only does it get worse before it gets better. But he says that once things are better for a few days, watch out because your little tester is going to re-test you to see if you pass. And you better pass or you'll be at square one before you even know it! And if you're like me, I rather be moving forward with things than falling backwards!

So watch out if you have a little tester at home and make sure you are passing those tests by staying cool, calm and collected and yes, consistent! The little testers have a way of knowing when you are tired and had an exhausting day and that the last thing you want to be doing is passing their little tests. But the more tests you pass, the less tests you'll have -- in other words, your child will stop testing you because they aren't getting any reactions out of you and what fun is it to test someone who is consistently cool, calm and collected?

Do you have a little tester at home, too? What has seem to work or not work when it comes to passing their tests?

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