One way ticket to TantrumVille

Master L is 2.5 years old & is definitely making headway in the tantrum department. I am not quite sure where his attitude comes from - well that's a lie, its clearly his older 5 (going on 15) year old brother - but he'd give a teenager a run for their money that's for sure!

I recently took my three to a local Macdonald's for a "treat" after a busy day - I basically had no energy to cook - and the second we got there I instantly regretted it. See, my two year old enjoys making things into a game of 'lets see how quickly mummy gets flustered' and when I say he is the master at this, he is THE best. And when they all join in, I soon feel my eyes glazing over, my "happy place" coming into view and the autopilot switching on, so I can do what is needed to get us out of there and home in as quick a time as possible.

Here are 6 ways to get yourself a one way ticket to TantrumVille whilst eating out:

1. Ordering him the drink he asked for, because it isn't the same as the drink his brother has. Everything Master L has, has to be the same as what Master D has. Obviously. Any fool would know that, even if the thing in question isn't even liked by Master L. He would still like one of his own, you know, just to remind himself why he doesn't like it.

2. Giving his brother one of his chips, after he pinched one of his brothers. Because may I point out - and everyone with a 2 year old should know this - he is allowed to pinch food, but heaven forbid anyone should take a chip off of him. Whether he wanted the chips or not. If he was done with the chips & someone else wanted to finish them off, he now wants to eat the entire bag of chips. So, who's turn is it to sulk? The 5 year old who has had a chip stolen, or the 2 year old who's chip you are taking to replace the one he stole from his brother?

3. Flushing the toilet instead of letting him do it. Now I hate public toilets at the best of times, the germs all over them give me goose bumps just thinking about them, so I try to make toilet trips as short as possible. This means doing everything really, really fast and before the 2 year old makes a beeline for it. Yes, I would prefer to flush the toilet, but, alas, Master L has decided this is his all-time favourite thing to do at the bathroom.

4. Opening his toy for him. This is a huge no-no, especially before he has chance to. He and I both know he can't do it; those little plastic bags are far too hard to open when you are two. But hell hath no fury like a 2 year old who cant at least try opening them!
 
5. Insisting he sits whilst eating his food. Because that's ridiculous. Who sits still whilst eating?!

6. Telling him he cannot, under any circumstances, leave the restaurant on his own, whilst Mummy is popping Miss DL's dummy back in. Yes this actually happened. A lovely gentleman stopped him and caught my attention by saying "is this your little one trying to escape?" Of course that's my little one. Who else would he belong to *sigh*.

H.x