Any other 4 y/o drama llamas?

REOM

Really unbearable lately.

She cries at the drop of a hat. If she doesn't get what she wants, doesn't like what we are having for dinner, her sister takes her toy, doesn't want to leave daycare, etc, etc, etc.

Tonight the HYSTERICAL crying was because we didn't have anymore Barbie bandaids left.

I have talked to her about when to  cry, when to use words. Offered her a reward for 'no silly tears' days. Praised her for being a big girl and not crying. Yet still drama over Barbie bandaids!

Any advice?!

DandelionMom

No advice, just sympathy.  Gracie burst into tears today when she found the toy she'd been looking for.  She was completely inconsolable.  I guess she was so relieved she had to cry? 

ilovemygirls

Mine is almost 4 & has just been a beast lately.  Openly defiant, blatantly ignoring the rules, mischief making (like pouring a bottle of shampoo down the toilet).  She hasn't been so much a drama queen, but then, that's her sister's specialty so we've got that covered

akaoct2005

No advice, but you just described my 4 year old to a T.  I'm going crazy!  The other day I opened her apple sauce...you would have thought the world was coming to an end!

JOEBunny

We had that today because her brother touched a piece of her playdough, full blown screaming crying drama.  She is tenacious.  Got to give her that. 

BubblyToes

Dude, we had a 45 minute meltdown tonight because he couldn't have McDonalds for dinner. 

The last couple of days?  Drama.  City.

But I guess we're just being lazy, right?

juniper19

Is she getting enough sleep?  That's often the culprit when my dd (who has a tendency for big drama) has a lot of bad days.  A few nights of an earlier bedtime usually solves the problem.

REOM

At least I'm in good company!

Thanks, you all made me feel better

We have been really lucky so far with behavior, which makes this all the more difficult...

ridesbuttons

No, no, no, no, no!

The drama is supposed to end when they turn 4. 

Tell me this is MUD.   Throw me a bone, please.

eclaires

OMG, Jackson is an emotionally unstable 4YO.

The other day, he cried when we were leaving school.  Like, straight up sobbing tears because he would miss his friends.

I was like, child, please.  But because I like to lazy parent, I offered him ice cream when we got home if he'd quit crying.  WINNING.

BubblyToes

B, you are SO WINNING.

eclaires

I know!  He stopped crying right away.  It was awesome. 

Temp374386125003286

eclaires:

But because I like to lazy parent, I offered him ice cream when we got home if he'd quit crying.  WINNING.

Love this line!  

DandelionMom

Good lazy parents already have the bribe waiting in the car. 

eclaires

Dande, why do you always have to show the rest of us up?  Uncool.

goodheartedmommy

Bella's awful about it right now. I swear, though, the child gets PMS when I do. Which is unfortunate because mine lasts for-freaking-ever. I don't think it's just her reaction to me, I think honestly she has hormone fluctuations that make her emotions out of control. I say this because other times she's prone to the drama, but it's just not the same. There are definite times where I can rationalize with her a bit.

BubblyToes

DandelionMom:

Good lazy parents already have the bribe waiting in the car. 

You win the interwebs today.  For serious.

Marchmamma

Oh yes and what's even better?  It is rubbing off on DD#2.  Fun times.

REOM

note to self, keep ice cream in the car. milk allergies be damned!!

WifeyLindsay

Ya know, this post makes me feel SO much better. My 4yo has been ridiculous lately and I have felt like a failure of a mom. I think my only advice is just try to do as much for yourself as you can so that you can endure this! I just hope this is a phase that will pass. I'm sorry I don't have any great advice. Just know that i'm right there with ya.

mamarazzi

Well, at least I'm not alone.  DS is unbearably dramatic lately.  He does this cry where he opens his mouth as wide as it will go and just wails.  Over nothing.  There's no reasoning with him.

And I must've missed something about the lazy parenting, but I'm so in that category.  Bribes are my BFF.

rebs

ilovemygirls:

Mine is almost 4 & has just been a beast lately.  Openly defiant, blatantly ignoring the rules, mischief making (like pouring a bottle of shampoo down the toilet).  She hasn't been so much a drama queen, but then, that's her sister's specialty so we've got that covered

I have to know the outcome to that!  Does it make lots of bubbles??

And OP, yeah, my 3.5 year old is starting to discover drama...fun times.

MediaBride

Ahhh... yes.  My favorite line lately (said while sobbing)... "You are breaking my heart into tiny pieces!".  Ummm... what????  Seriously, where does a 4 year old hear this stuff.  He gives soap actresses a run for their money, this child.  EVERYTHING is a fight or "issue" in some way or another.

And he's on predisone this week b/c of his asthma.  KILLER.  It's just a good ol' time in my house... 

hikerbeth

When my DD was between 4 and 4.5 I wanted to send her away to boarding school.

I ended up making a chart with a couple of simple chores (she could earn a dime for each chore) and there were two dimes up for grabs if she didn't lose her sh!t over nothing.  It helped.

*Amy*

Ah yes.  4 has just about put this mama over the edge.  Luckily the past week I see a glimmer of hope....I really hope this is the beginning of the end of this stage.

Mominator

SO glad that it isn't just me. Yesterday DD had a full on breakdown for 45 minutes because she wanted to decorate for Easter and I told her we couldn't do it until the weekend because we needed to go out and buy new decorations.

belle204

Girl, I think the 5 yr old is regressing. She is likely a strong contender for Emmy for Best Drama Queen. She is off the chain ridiculous.

CubbyMama

hikerbeth:

When my DD was between 4 and 4.5 I wanted to send her away to boarding school.

I ended up making a chart with a couple of simple chores (she could earn a dime for each chore) and there were two dimes up for grabs if she didn't lose her sh!t over nothing.  It helped.

This made me cackle...a lot. We have the Melissa & Doug responsibility chart and I'm picturing adding "Don't lose your sh*t over nothing" as one of her responsibilities.

I posted this exact Q a couple of weeks ago and got many similar replies. K has burst into tears about things like E (a TWO YEAR OLD) saying no to her, not being able to get her shoe on/off, and overhearing that we left our crock pot at IL's (seriously). Her preschool teacher says she is "definitely the most emotional" of the 10-12 kids in her class and that she cries about tiny things there, too. She's an October baby and the kindergarten cut-off is Dec. 2 here, but we've decided to keep her back until next fall, mainly for this reason. (CA is moving the date back to Sept. 2 over the next few years, anyway, so based on the new cutoff date, she wouldn't qualify to start at 4 if she'd been born a couple of years later.)

kjr

The closer we are getting to 5 the better it is, but yes, he is dramatic. 

We had a full blown meltdown complete with uncontrollable sobbing because he realizes that Scooby Doo is not real and can't come over to our house and play with him and won't come to his birthday party! lol

neesernicole

i'm printing this off and sending it to my husband. while 4 is MUCH better than 3 ever thought about being ... we have our moments.

and mediabride, you aren't the only one to break your child's heart - apparently asking her to put her socks on can do that to a kid.

shouldbworkin

Yes and I ask "why all the drama, little llama?"  haha!  I'm to the point where I have to take her to her room sometimes b/c it's just too much.  but, usually, she just needs to cry for a bit until she forgets what she was so upset about and a hug will fix it right up.