What do you do with your kids?

Hi aurorastorm! I have two kids,a toddler and a baby. For my 2 year old daughter, it could be tiresome sometimes, especially now that they are testing their autonomy and discovering things on their own, But there are some things that they need not to be doing yet or touching, etc. It irks if you tell them not to to "this" or "that", the more will they act on it. But, reading through topics on kids regarding their behavior, it all is pointing to the caregiver's attention. Your son is nine, I really think that you should be firm with your commands but at the same time constantly talking to them of the wrong thing they did and the consequences it causes. It may seem they do not keep to heart what you say but the key point is to have the patience to never get tired of talking to them. Loosing your grip on all their foolishness is just normal, but i think when this happens you need to cool yourself down first. You could go to other first and calm down yourself then when you are, that is the time you talk to your son. I assure you that if you tell your son not to do this and what will happen if he does that thing in a caring manner, he will understand. I hope this helps, aurorastorm.

I dont have kids yet but I have experienced taking care of my nephews and they were really hyperactive. I guess my sister also has to deal with them the same way you do but my nephews find me scary that they always obey what I tell them. I hope when I would have my own kids, they are going to obey me like my nephews did.

Timeouts work on a 9 year old as long as there are strict conditions. For instance, you can't send him to his room and allow him to entertain himself by playing with something so he should have to sit on his bed and think about what he did. My kids hated that part because, afterwards, we would have a talk about it. What they had done wrong, why it was wrong, what they should have done, what they will do in the future..things like that. Sometimes taking a favorite item away for a specific amount of time works, too. The key is to find what works and continue to use that method until it no longer works...but discussing the behavior should always be part of the lesson.

I have no kid, but I know that most kids sometimes will make their parents crazy...

Depending on perspective, I am lucky or unlucky enough not to have children. My partner has a son who was 14 when we met, and luckily we have always gotten along fine. Post school he spent a lot of time at a London academy, so I did not experience many of that age group's troubles. I also work nights, so come into contact with few who have children. The few that have them do have an air of 'tearing their hair out' about them. Hopefully some experienced myLotters will be able to come to your aid!