I was starting to resign myself to the fact that these days Miss G looks nothing but a pink polyester and vomit-inducing vision when things got even worse. I used to have to negotiate with her in order to take her fancy rags off for bathtime and bedtime, having begrudgingly conceded to walks to the supermarket in our pink finest. However, it now turns up that this was the tip of the iceberg. She is in fact pretty much enjoying torturing me on each and every single garment and accessory that is required for her to keep warm, walk or sleep in.
I hear you saying 'just let her experiment' or even 'roll with it' and I would unhappily second the advice if it wasn't that her 'wants' don't make sense. If she demands pink tights and I give her just that, somehow it is still not OK. I hear 'I CAN'T wear it' about 60 times an hour. No kidding! Even when she is finally OK with a specific hair style, she will then cry and say 'I can't wear this spilla* mamma!' The hormones / frustration / witchcraft (delete as appropriate) have taken hold of her little body and I'm in for 35 minutes of screams every time we need to clothe or unclothe ourselves. It is just my sodding luck that this 'phase' comes in the snowy weeks of the year! If only it had been summer, my fights would last a quarter of the time, FFS!
Not satisfied for driving me nuts every time we have to get dressed, she has started to challenge me on pretty much everything and she is just driving me mad. I use her hideous princess dresses as bargaining power and I therefore hear myself saying things like 'If you don't do this / wear this / stop screaming ... you will not be allowed to wear your princess dress today' It is amazing how that threat makes her stop for a second and think her next move. It has worked at times and, when she still didn't curb the madness, she has accepted the consequences. Tonight she has been looking at the dress with sad eyes and greeted Mr H on his return by saying: 'G has done lots of crying and can't wear the princess dress now'
What should I do? Please share some advice, I beg you. I hear myself saying 'princess dress' about 100 times a day and I swear that it is starting to disturb me. Whatever you say, don't tell me tomorrow can't be as bad. I won't fall for that one any more!
*spilla = Italian for hairpin
When S was going through that phase I found offering a limited choice worked well - I'd give him two options and he got to choose which one. He seemed to feel better that he could make his own decisions and limiting the options made it a lot easier.
ReplyDeleteGood luck!
thanks. I like to hear that you survived it as I am seriously doubting my strength
DeleteBurton is and has been a nightmare for getting dressed for a long time! avoids it, takes forever, takes things off again, refuses to wear trousers because they have a button on FFS!!!! its sooooooooo frustrating so i feel your pain. i try to be patient because as soon as i give in to my impatience he takes even longer!!!
ReplyDeletestill she does look cute !!! good luck i dont have much advice i am afraid x
thanks for telling mer that even boys go through it. I swear 9 people out of 10 tell me something like 'it's a girl thing!'
DeleteShe looks very gorgeous. Have no advice and lots of sympathy as my little man turned 2 last month and whatever tantrums he had before pale into insignificance with what he is now capable of and you never know what will set him off! Aarrgghhhhh
ReplyDeletesnap! she used to be fairly meek before. Frustrating!
DeleteI won't say tomorrow will be better - but she'll proably have grown out of this phase by the time she's, oh, I don't know, 26?
ReplyDeleteIt's bossy girls! My daughter is nearly 4 and will not wear trousers of any kind, so it's skirts and tights every day, been same since she was 2. I just don't try with the trousers any more...you have to lose some battles to win the war! She did manage to wear sallopettes to play out in the snow tho, but she did keep her tights on underneath!
ReplyDeleteMy 2 girls are so fussy about what they were. The eldest from about 3 (she's now 5) refused to wear dresses and insisted on wearing leggings and t-shirts. Her wardrobe is full of beautiful but unworn dresses. I let her pick what she wants to wear, although I inwardly groan at her choices of colours etc. I try to offer her guidance and I introduced a rule that she wears dresses on Sundays and to birthday parties.
ReplyDeleteThe other one, at 20 months, is shaping up to be just as bad. If she doesn't want to wear something then she won't. She'll kick and scream so it's just not worth it. However she doesn't like shorts and only likes "pretty" dresses. She has a couple of favourites that she picks out. I can't believe she's got such a strong opinion at such a young age.
Sometimes you have to pick your battles. I think you have to let them get on with it as it's just not worth the arguments. (It is only a phase, however long it lasts.)
Good luck!
I have literally stopped shopping for things. She has received 3 new PJs for Xmas but refuses to wear them in favour of one that is so small it hardly fits. Go figure!
DeleteI'm sorry, but this did make me laugh - not least because she looks so funny in her little princess costumes!! But seriously though, I feel your pain. Allegra has started the terrible twos early I think, she is such a sweet natured lovely little girl MOST of the time, but increasingly she's revealing her "dark side" and it is REALLY TESTING me!! Crying at the drop of a hat, stropping/crying when she doesn't get her own way even on the most minor of things, wanting me to pick her up and carry her everywhere, EVERYWHERE!! not the easiest thing to deal with at the best of times let alone at 40 weeks pregnant... sorry, this is meant to be a comment to give you support and advice, instead I have ended up having a rant myself!! Anyway, what I guess I'm saying is - you're not alone!! xxx
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