Tweet
Visited Disney on Thursday with my sister. We had a good time, but I was exhausted since I was running on two hours of sleep. I finally left at around 5:00 pm, because I could barely keep my eyes open.
When I boarded the tram to take me back to my car, I happened to sit in front of a group of tourists (they were speaking what sounded like Russian) and the family appeared to consist of Mom, Grandma, Dad (? Could have been Grandpa), and two young boys - one infant, the other around 4 or 5 years old. The mother was sitting in the seat directly before the others (this is important later).
The older child was wearing a pirate outfit and was playing with a plastic sword. By playing I mean he was smacking it anywhere he could, including into his mother's shoulder and near his infant brother. The mother finally took it away from him, and what did he do? Immediately started to cry and HIT her! He was smacking her anywhere he could reach (she was in the seat in front of him, so he really only had access to her shoulders and head), and mumbling in that indecipherable child-speak. I was floored.
The mom put the toy sword on a stroller she had sitting next to her, and when she told the little boy off for hitting her, he actually reached over the seat and tried to take the sword off the stroller. Again, the mom said something to him and tried to pry his hand away from the toy sword. He wasn't budging though, and I could slowly see the mother starting to give in. In my head I'm screaming "NO! Don't reward his tantrum! Don't do it!" but of course, he ended up getting his sword back.
I'm always saddened when parents give in to their kids. I can understand being exhausted and not wanting to deal with it, but rewarding a child for bad behavior just makes them repeat the behavior. It's best to stick to your guns as best you can and try to cement the fact that YOU are boss, and no amount of tantrum throwing will change that.
When I boarded the tram to take me back to my car, I happened to sit in front of a group of tourists (they were speaking what sounded like Russian) and the family appeared to consist of Mom, Grandma, Dad (? Could have been Grandpa), and two young boys - one infant, the other around 4 or 5 years old. The mother was sitting in the seat directly before the others (this is important later).
The older child was wearing a pirate outfit and was playing with a plastic sword. By playing I mean he was smacking it anywhere he could, including into his mother's shoulder and near his infant brother. The mother finally took it away from him, and what did he do? Immediately started to cry and HIT her! He was smacking her anywhere he could reach (she was in the seat in front of him, so he really only had access to her shoulders and head), and mumbling in that indecipherable child-speak. I was floored.
The mom put the toy sword on a stroller she had sitting next to her, and when she told the little boy off for hitting her, he actually reached over the seat and tried to take the sword off the stroller. Again, the mom said something to him and tried to pry his hand away from the toy sword. He wasn't budging though, and I could slowly see the mother starting to give in. In my head I'm screaming "NO! Don't reward his tantrum! Don't do it!" but of course, he ended up getting his sword back.
I'm always saddened when parents give in to their kids. I can understand being exhausted and not wanting to deal with it, but rewarding a child for bad behavior just makes them repeat the behavior. It's best to stick to your guns as best you can and try to cement the fact that YOU are boss, and no amount of tantrum throwing will change that.
Comment