Tonight, my 6 year old came out of the shower and demanded that I help him dry off and get dressed. I said he could do it himself, and he proceeded to shout, cry and melt down. I started to talk (in my big mom voice) about his attitude and that I was not to be talked to that way. It only angered him more. Finally, the light went off...I stopped, wrapped the towel around him and gave him a hug. He just needed to be held, and loved, and put to bed. Once he was dried off, I asked him to get dressed, but he still refused to do it himself...here we go again...this time, I told him, "When you are dressed, I will meet you downstairs for stories". He did not like it, but at the end of the day, a mom can only take so much. Instead of staying and getting angry, I just left and waited downstairs. I could hear him murmuring and saying how much he hated me...but I let him get dressed. When he came downstairs, he said he did not like me, so I hugged him again and just started reading. WOW. It is really tough to stay calm, isin't it? It still takes a lot of practice, and thinking before I speak, but somehow I am seeing that my job is to love him, and that he can learn a whole lot more from a calm, patient teacher than an angry power hungry teacher.
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