“Natalie, what would you like to eat?”
“YOGURT!!!!”*
“Natalie, how do you ask nicely?”
“PLEASE!!”
“Can….”
“Can…I…have…YOGURT PLEASE!!!!”
“Okay, here’s your yogurt.”
“NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!”
“No? You just asked for yogurt.”
“NOOOOOO. I…WANT…APPLE SAUCE!!!!!!!!”
“Can you ask nicely?”
“Can…I….have…apple sauce please?”
“Are you sure you want it?”
“YEAH!!”
“So if I open this apple sauce, you’re going to eat it?”
“YEAH!!!”
“Okay, here you go.”
“NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!! I want to COLOR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”
Oy Vey. Is this the terrible twos? When I relayed this conversation to Melissa, she looked at me with utter shock and disbelief. “Natalie? Really? She’s so sweet and quiet when she’s here!” Great.
*I’m way past trying to encourage Natalie to “use her indoor voice.” I am choosing to maintain my sanity by ignoring her shouting while silently saying to myself, “it’s a phase. it’s just a phase.”
Welcome to the terrible 2’s! Kids never act the same for their sitters as they do for their parents. Try whispering to her when she is shouting at you. She may lower her voice to match your voice. Good luck!!
That strategy actually did work. I kept saying, “I’ll be happy to help you when your voice is as calm as mine.” She did lower her voice, but only for a sentence or two