This past week Lilly has had more regular, full-blown toddler tantrums. Like most toddler tantrums they start when she doesn’t get an item she wants or is asked to do something she’s not interested. They are very predictable and a lot of the time we can end them before they really begin, but they are quickly becoming more intense.

Lilly typically puts herself against a wall or corner and cries or shrieks for several minutes of varying intensity. At first she will kick and flail her arms if you try to intervene but this only lasts a few minutes, even though the tantrum itself can last for over ten minutes. We respond by acknowledging how she’s feeling with key words for emotions, explaining why she can’t have the item, giving her a minute on her own, and sitting very calmly nearby to wait for a response from her. Since this is so new we’re still in the ‘gathering information’ stage before we come up with a real action plan. We’ve gotten lots of advice but every child is different and we will come up with a plan that works best for Lilly and ourselves.  I have to say that while I fear the day that these start hapenning in public, they are surprisingly manageable at home and they don’t get under my skin at all.  I’m sure that will be different when another one is added to the mix!