On Monday I stayed home from work because Kaitlyn was still running a fever. She also had no appetite and was very lethargic. She slept for about six hours during the day, and in between her naps it was apparent that she didn't know exactly what she wanted.
She would want up, so I'd pick her up. Then she wanted down. Then she wanted up again. But not up on my lap - up on the couch so she was sitting beside me. Then she wanted to lay down. Then she wanted her book. But having a book while you are laying down (on your stomach) isn't really a good plan, which led to frustration. So she would then want to sit up.
And round and round it went.
Then she arrived at a place where she was adamantly demanding something from the coffee table. She kept pointing, and grunting, and saying something I couldn't understand. After I picked up every single object that was on the coffee table (and we had collected quite an assortment of snacks, books, toys, etc.), and after she shook her head "no" to each one, I finally realized that she wanted her sunglasses. (Which were on the end table, NOT the coffee table. Sheesh!)
She was running a fever, and she wanted her sunglasses. Of course - why didn't I think of that sooner??
I was so relieved to finally know what she wanted, and hoped that her attitude would improve. I put the sunglasses on her, and managed to take this picture:
About .05 seconds after the picture was taken, the meltdown began.
She wanted to wear her sunglasses while laying on her side. Sunglasses + putting your head on a pillow = not comfortable + major temper tantrum.
She kicked, she screamed, she cried. She thrashed around. What's a mother to do??
About three minutes into the tantrum I took the glasses away from her. I said, "I know you want them, but you aren't going to be comfortable wearing them. They are NOT going to do what you want them to do, so I'm putting them away."
As you might guess, this didn't go over very well. She basically clawed her way over to where I put them and threw even MORE of a tantrum in an effort to get them back.
So I sighed a deep sigh and gave them back. She was quiet for about .5 seconds, and then she tried to lay down again. [Insert great weeping and gnashing of teeth. From both of us.]
Normally I would have put her in time out. But it just doesn't seem fair to put a 20-month-old who has a fever and is obviously not feeling good, into a time out. I figured this was one of those moments as a parent where I just had to weather the storm, and in the end she would tire herself out.
I also figured that I might as well try attempt #2 at taking away the sunglasses. If she was going to tire herself out she needed to be able to eventually lay down, and she couldn't do that with her sunglasses on. (She likes to lay on her side or her stomach.) This, of course, was met with an increased amount of weeping and gnashing of teeth.
She did, as I predicted, eventually tire herself out. Then she slept for three hours.
And I caught up on my recorded episodes of "Top Chef" and "America's Next Top Model." So all in all, in ended up being a productive day. ;-D
She would want up, so I'd pick her up. Then she wanted down. Then she wanted up again. But not up on my lap - up on the couch so she was sitting beside me. Then she wanted to lay down. Then she wanted her book. But having a book while you are laying down (on your stomach) isn't really a good plan, which led to frustration. So she would then want to sit up.
And round and round it went.
Then she arrived at a place where she was adamantly demanding something from the coffee table. She kept pointing, and grunting, and saying something I couldn't understand. After I picked up every single object that was on the coffee table (and we had collected quite an assortment of snacks, books, toys, etc.), and after she shook her head "no" to each one, I finally realized that she wanted her sunglasses. (Which were on the end table, NOT the coffee table. Sheesh!)
She was running a fever, and she wanted her sunglasses. Of course - why didn't I think of that sooner??
I was so relieved to finally know what she wanted, and hoped that her attitude would improve. I put the sunglasses on her, and managed to take this picture:
About .05 seconds after the picture was taken, the meltdown began.
She wanted to wear her sunglasses while laying on her side. Sunglasses + putting your head on a pillow = not comfortable + major temper tantrum.
She kicked, she screamed, she cried. She thrashed around. What's a mother to do??
About three minutes into the tantrum I took the glasses away from her. I said, "I know you want them, but you aren't going to be comfortable wearing them. They are NOT going to do what you want them to do, so I'm putting them away."
As you might guess, this didn't go over very well. She basically clawed her way over to where I put them and threw even MORE of a tantrum in an effort to get them back.
So I sighed a deep sigh and gave them back. She was quiet for about .5 seconds, and then she tried to lay down again. [Insert great weeping and gnashing of teeth. From both of us.]
Normally I would have put her in time out. But it just doesn't seem fair to put a 20-month-old who has a fever and is obviously not feeling good, into a time out. I figured this was one of those moments as a parent where I just had to weather the storm, and in the end she would tire herself out.
I also figured that I might as well try attempt #2 at taking away the sunglasses. If she was going to tire herself out she needed to be able to eventually lay down, and she couldn't do that with her sunglasses on. (She likes to lay on her side or her stomach.) This, of course, was met with an increased amount of weeping and gnashing of teeth.
She did, as I predicted, eventually tire herself out. Then she slept for three hours.
And I caught up on my recorded episodes of "Top Chef" and "America's Next Top Model." So all in all, in ended up being a productive day. ;-D
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1 comment:
Awwwww, poor baby! Maybe her eyes hurt? ;)
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