5 Ways To Deal With The Terrible Twos

I used to think taking care of kids was super easy. It even annoyed me when I would see a parent who couldn't calm down his or her screaming child at Target. I mean, hello, just get your kid to pipe down. Parents are probably shaking their heads and laughing at my naivety. But as a recent college grad, I had only dealt with big kids. Yes, some of them acted like they were two, but that's neither here nor there. Then I graduated and got a job at a daycare where I had to deal with fourteen screaming toddlers for eight hours a day, five days a week. You can only imagine how many gray hairs I have, you guys. And I'm only 23. But here are five ways I learned how to deal with those terrible twos.

1. Follow through.

It's easy to talk the talk, but you have to walk the walk. If you're teaching your child how to share, it's important to not cave in when they start throwing that inevitable hissy fit. It only takes one time of you giving in to your child's screaming tantrum for them to learn that a tantrum will get them what they want. Don't cave in. Be strong. You got this, I promise!

2. Laugh.

Before I worked with the twos, I worked with sixth graders at a summer camp. Let me tell you something about sixth graders: they are the exact same as two-year olds. The only difference is they can use the restroom by themselves. I was one of three lead camp counselors. One of the girls had the absolute worst reactions to situations. If a kid was crying, she was equally, if not more upset about the situation. She was stressed out about nearly everything. So therefore, I was stressed out about nearly everything. Talk about the worst summer ever. Then, I became the lead teacher of the tots and from there I learned that your response matters. If you act stressed and upset, the kids will be stressed and upset. But when you laugh over spilled milk (both literally and figuratively), you are far more likely to raise happier children. Happier children have less hissy fits. Everybody likes that.

3. "You're okay!"

Probably my favorite phrase ever. You know how wimpy kids can be. It's not their fault, but let's face it: they're wimpy. They trip on a stick and they cry so hard you start to think they broke their arm. Instead of showering them with attention when they get that scrunched up red face, let out a calm, "You're okay!" flash a smile, and distract them with another toy. You'd be surprised at how many tantrums you will avoid with this simple statement!

4. Love and logic.

When I became the lead toddler teacher, I was forced to take a love and logic class. I thought it was ridiculous because it took time out of my Wednesday nights when I could be having a beer with my friends. Don't shake your heads at me, parents. Your child's current teachers are thinking the same thing. But I'm so glad I took the class. It taught me how to respond to situations without freaking out. As a parent, you have probably had your fair share of freak out moments. But a love and logic class teaches you to respond to crying toddlers in a loving, but reasonable way. So when you take their toy away because they aren't sharing, you explain that you love them and that they can have their toy back when they learn to share. It might not work at first, but after a while your child will start to understand and you will notice a decrease in the amount of fits both you and your child encounter!

5. Talk to your tot.

When your toddler is crying, it's hard to be sympathetic because it seems they cry at pretty much everything. But when the tots would throw fits, I would talk with them. I would ask why they feel sad or suggest that they sit by themselves for a while to cool off. When you treat your child as if their problems are just as important to you as they are to them, the fit won't last as long.