Now that the decorations are up and the house is full of breakables, Daven has been wide eyed and on the prowl. At first he didn’t try to touch the tree at all, he just wanted to look at it and stare at all the twinkle lights. However, the new has faded a bit and now he wants to touch, grab, and pull on any and everything that mom doesn’t want him to.

(Here he is at Monga’s house while we were decorating her tree. Our theme this year is “50’s Christmas.” Every year we have a new Christmas theme, but that is a longer more detailed post about tradition. HA!)

I have always been a person that has said I will not be afraid to discipline my child and he/she will NOT be throwing any temper tantrums. Lately, however, I seem to catch myself giggling and smiling inside when Daven throws a fit about something. Just last night, he was crawling as fast as his little legs would allow getting to the tree before I caught him. As soon as I saw him, I scooped him up and said a stern NO! With that, he instantly started kicking his legs and screaming in anger. I have pictured this day in my head so many times. Child does something bad, mom says no, child continues to misbehave, mom disciplines child. Nevertheless this particular day I did not get angry, I just smiled and held him while he threw his fit.

To me, this one tantrum made it seem as though Daven was a “normal” toddler trying to get away with something he knows he shouldn’t. Temper tantrum by definition is a disruptive or an undesirable behavior or emotional outburst displayed in response to unmet needs or desires, or an inability to control emotions stemming from frustration or difficulty expressing the particular need or desire. Temper tantrums or "acting-out" behaviors are natural during early childhood development. As children learn to separate from their parents, they have a normal and natural tendency to assert their independence.

Watching Daven try to assert his independence is a beautiful thing! The terrible twos are rapidly approaching and I am anxious to watch and discipline each and every tantrum. It is funny how I always imagined what kind of Mom I would be long before I ever had children. Now that I have been blessed with Daven, my mothering/parenting style has changed 100%.

No matter the parenting style I end up having, I am confident Daven will grow up in a home full of love and care.

LOVE LOVE LOVE