This week I read an article

On how much we should let

Our toddler use a screen and on the

Guidelines we should set. 🤔

…

It said that screens are not as bad

As they’re made out to be.

They can help kids develop if you

Use them correctly. 🙃

…

But what the story did not say

Was kids learn tech so quick.

They’ll find all the hidden features,

Making you look thick. 😬

Sometimes parenting’s a battle

That you fight uphill.

But you can make good use of your

Influencing skills. 😏

…

Work out what’s in it for them

And that’s where you begin.

To get them to do what you want

You have to sell it in. 🤩

…

So positioning your message

Really is the key,

And if you find that doesn’t work

There’s always bribery. 😜

How you plan and organise will

Be put to the test.

You will spend your life deciding

What is for the best. 🤔

…

Do you have the things you need

To go out for the day?

If you forget anything

It will not be okay. 😬

…

You must cover all the bases,

Plans from A to Z.

It’s no wonder there is no room

Left inside your head. 🤯

We’ve taught toddler sign language

To communicate.

They have picked it up so quickly,

It is working great. 😁

…

To say please and thank you, we get

Them to nod their head.

We make them do it every time

So they know what they’ve said. 🤓

…

The next one that is on the list,

And will make Mummy happy,

Is getting them to tell me when they

Have a dirty nappy. 😜

We have negotiations daily,

Then we make a deal.

You can watch a DVD,

Please just eat your meal. 🤨

…

And putting on the dreaded shoes

Can be a nightmare,

Unless I say we’re going out

In the car somewhere. 🤭

…

Compromising’s difficult

And I frequently fail,

Coz toddler’s turning out to be

A master at blackmail. 😱

You will need to make sure you are

Working as a team.

Especially when executing

The bedtime routine. 😴

…

I clear up the devastation,

Husband does the bath.

It is so much easier

When we each do our half. 😇

…

So if husband’s working late

And I am left alone,

It gives me such respect for folk

Who do this on their own. 🤓

I fit my yoga in first thing

When I get up each day.

Put toddler in the travel cot.

She just sits and plays. 😇

…

I only do a little bit,

It’s easy to sustain.

For me, it is the perfect start.

It focusses my brain. 🤓

…

My neck and shoulder knots were bad.

I hunched at my PC.

But yoga’s ironed each one out,

And now I am pain free. 🙂

Blankies, they are magical

When toddlers are upset.

Even if they’ve hurt themselves,

With blankie they forget. 🙂

…

But make sure you take blankie

When you go into town,

Coz if your toddler’s in distress,

Then it will calm them down. ☺️

…

And you just need to hope they choose

A washable blankie.

They can get quite revolting because

Toddlers get them manky. 😷

Recently we’ve seen the signs

Of the terrible twos.

No longer is our toddler doing

What we want them to. 🤨

…

At the moment, there’s no pattern,

Not that I can see.

They seem to have their little tantrums

Indiscriminately. 😡

…

And so we have employed new tactics.

They work like a dream.

We basically ignore our child

Till they run out of steam. 😜

Flexibility’s essential.

Change you must embrace.

As, not only do things change,

They do so at some pace. 😱💨

…

Remember when they couldn’t walk?

Seems in the distant past.

But it has only been three months!

They sure develop fast. 🤓

…

So if this week has been quite tough,

It’s good to keep in mind,

It’s temporary, and this phase

Will soon be far behind. 🙂