Child logic

Feels like I've been batting with Michael all day.  I try not to yell at him too much, but it feels like that's all I do these days.

It's little things, but the end up escalating.  When we got home from biking, I asked him to please wash his hands before eating.  He said no, and threw a fit when me and Grandma insisted.  So in response I took away his star-star cookies (that's what he calls them, they are star-shaped toddler-sized cookies) and said he could have them back after he washed his hands.

He got even more upset and tried to put one of his wooden blocks in his mouth.  He really does know better, and for some reason when he's angry, his way of lashing out is by trying to eat things that he knows he should not (and in fact cannot) eat.

For example, he has threatened to eat his Thomas Wooden trains, his Lightning McQueen die-cast cars, his blocks, even a big 3 gallon plastic container for holding his toys.  When he threatens to eat such an object and we call his bluff, he glares with indignation and anger, and pauses for a moment like "Look, I'm really gonna do it!"  Sometimes he'll repeat that he is going to eat (whatever it is).  If we say go ahead, he gets confused, angry, and then tries to take a bite.  *sigh*

When Mommy got home from work today, I told her "Michael tried to eat one of the wooden blocks today."

She looked at him sternly and asked "Michael, did you try to eat a wooden block today?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Daddy took away my star-star cookies."

At that point, I interjected with "Honey, ask him WHY Daddy took away his cookies."

Mommy - "Why did Daddy take away your cookies?"

Michael - "Because I didn't wash my hands."

Well, at least he's honest, and quite able to retrace a series of cause-effect events in reverse order to get to the original cause (Michael not washing his hands) that got us to the undesirable result (Michael trying to eat a wooden block).

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