You’ve started out the door on an outing or an errand—you absolutely have to get to the store, the library, the bank, and the school. Your child has had a nap, even though she was a bit on the cranky side earlier in the morning. Once she gets in the car, though, she starts whining and complaining—should you abort the mission? What if she throws a fit on line at the library? Should you push on? How do you know if your child is just too crabby for public?
Well, how much can you handle and how much should everyone else around you—not to mention the child herself—have to endure? You might have a high capacity for whining, complaining and full on tantrums because, let’s face it; many of us parents get pretty thick-skinned to such things. But, should the seniors at the library or the people at the bank have to put up with those screams and tantrums too? Is the child coming down with an illness and acting crabby because she can’t help it? Have the two of you spent too much time together and are you having a chemical cranky reaction to that overexposure?
I think it helps to take a step back and try to evaluate a crabby child situation before you get out in public or get so far into your circumstances that you lose perspective. What do you absolutely have to do today and what can be put off for a time when people are cheerier? Can you get a babysitter or take the child to play with grandma while you run those errands or is it best to just stay home and watch movies or bake cookies? I think we get into a trap when we get stuck in either/or thinking and are so determined to force our will on our child or get done what we have set for ourselves that we don’t take into account the child’s mood or temperament.
When in doubt, ask yourself if going out in public is going to make things better or worse for the both of you (and anyone else you might come in contact with along the way?)
Also: Lack of Sleep Affects Big Kids Too