She's got high hopes...

She’s Got High Hopes…
Sometimes I forget how strong willed Hayden can be. Everyone tends to have a new adjective to describe her recently. Some I think are cute, some are humorous, and some could be interpreted as offensive- luckily I have a very good sense of humor and am rarely “hurt” by some comments. Admittedly, the child has been very independent from a young age. She can’t help it- she takes after her mother. She simply wants what she wants, when she wants it. When she doesn’t get it, she screams, throws herself on the floor and holds her breath until she gets it. Seems logical to me. I mean, how easy would life be if I could just lay on the floor and scream “DIRTY GREYGOOSE ON THE ROCKS!!!” and someone would just bring it to me.
I would like to list some of the words I’ve heard this week: Manipulative (really?, she’s 18 months- how conniving can an 18 month old be?), Spunky (a personal favorite), Animated (she sure is), Theatrical (Oscar award winning, I think), and Spirited (I think that’s the codeword for misbehaved).
Here is where the problem comes into play. When she plays this little tantrum game with me, I don’t buy it. How does that slang phrase go? You can’t poop on a pooper… Okay, that’s not how it goes at all, but I try my best to keep this blog pg-13. I think you can probably figure out what I’m trying to say. She doesn’t get away with this act with me, but some weaker souls (my Mom for example) simply cannot say no her angelic little face. I truly believe that God made these little monsters so adorable so that we wouldn’t leave them in the woods when they acted this way.
Regardless, it doesn’t make it any easier to accept the fact that we’ve entered the “terribles” zone and I’m not really sure how to handle these outbursts. At home, it’s easy. My new pediatrician (who I love, by the way) strongly encourages “Ignore and Isolate”. You put her in a safe place (her playpen since she no longer uses it and it confines her) and then close the door and ignore her until she calms down. Since I’m a sucker, I won’t leave her in there for more than three minutes. She has performed several marathon tantrums. On Monday night, I almost lost my mind when we entered the 75th minute of tantrum. All I did was try to keep my hand under her head so she wouldn’t keep banging it on the floor. Every time she saw me looking at her, the act would get louder and more involved. I’m not emotionless and the truth is that I hate these outbursts. What Mommy doesn’t? So, sometimes I cry. I won’t let her see me cry though. That would be an act of weakness on my part and I’m pretty sure she smells fear. But I’m getting better with them. Last night, I made the decision to take her out to dinner with me and two of my single girlfriends. I remember the nights where we would sit at the restaurant table for hours, polish off a couple bottles of wine and discuss anything and everything- last night we barely got through one small pitcher of Sangria and I have no idea what we talked about. All I kept trying to do was keep Hayden quiet and occupied. She only threw herself on the floor screaming twice. A success, I think.
What boggles my mind is that she is so good when she’s out with other kids. She’s polite and loves playing with children her own age. She follows the older girls around at the park (they’re mean to her though and it takes every ounce of my being not to yell at them and remind them she’s just a little girl)- She’s beautiful, loves to sing and so funny. How do I possibly get through these random acts of tantrum?! I asked the doctor when she would stop. He told me 25. Cool, I thought. Cool.