I used to think of myself as a patient person, but having kids has changed that. I find myself yelling constantly, and just feeling frazzled almost everyday. The kids aren’t terrible; we’ve pretty much passed the tantrum phase, but now they whine a lot. Now I know why all those junior high school teachers had those circular signs with the word “whining” and a line through it–whining is really, really annoying. When the kids whine, I find myself getting incredibly angry–tantrums just made me want to cry, but whining could be worse because I retaliate against them.
I think part of the problem is that they tend to whine at the same time, whereas, they never had a tantrum at the same time. With two kids whining at the same time, I can’t help but start yelling. Here’s what I sound like:
ELEANOR, PUT ON YOUR SHOES! SIT DOWN! SIT DOWN! SEE, NOW YOU DROPPED YOUR CEREAL! PICK IT UP! PICK IT UP NOW! MIRANDA, STOP WHINING! NO, YOU CAN’T WEAR THAT SHIRT, IT’S DIRTY! YOU HAVE TO WEAR THIS ONE! STOP! STOP TAKING OFF YOUR PANTS! IT’S TIME TO GO TO SCHOOL! PUT YOUR PANTS BACK ON! FINE, I DON’T CARE! MOMMY’S GOING TO WORK AND I’M LEAVING YOU HERE BY YOURSELVES!
I hate it when I lose it and just start yelling, but I’m not sure how to deal with whining. Ignoring it just makes them whine more. I read somewhere that you should whine back at them, but I’m skeptical about that technique. Any suggestions? Should I time-out for whining?