Erin

Wow, I had hoped that parenting would not be this frustrating until Erin was a teen ... however, this is not our luck! This week has been kinda horendous, as Erin has decided that as she is almost 3, she needs to revisit every boundary known to her and see if it is still in place. Therefore, we are back to needing almost an hour to get to sleep at naptime, throwing screaming fits, hitting, throwing objects, yelling/talking back to adults, eating food off the floor (this is my fault for not sweeping after every meal). Those are just a few treats we've been experiencing. Another one, and you'll be able to attest to this if you've called me or I've called you in the past week or so, is Erin's ability to know exactly when I am on the phone, and producing a scream that is just the frequency to really grate on the nerves of everyone within three rooms of her, and within probably about 6 feet of the phone of the person who I am trying to dialog with in a semi-civilized manner. That one has been really special. She has been whiny, demanding, naughty, and devious all week. Any suggestions?? She has had several spankings this week (which seem to be working a bit more since she's only wearing panties these days), lots of toys have been in time-out for an afternoon, and today at naptime, I took away her "blue softee pillow", which really did make a big impact. She went to sleep after that! I've taken away priveledges, put her in time-out, and anything else I can imagine. Again, any suggestions?

For those of you who enjoy her antics, I'd love to invite you to come enjoy her for a day -- I need some quiet!

We love her. We are trying to cherish these times, and probalby failing miserably, but we do thank God for the gift of Erin!

This is a later addition ... we also know that throwing candy away makes a big blip on Erin's radar, resulting in tears and yelling ...

"We never, ever, ever throw candy in the trashcan, okay Daddy?!" Oh the humanity!