Born Free

Tory has recently developed a stubborn streak. He knows what he wants, and any deviation from his desires results in a tantrum.

The past couple of breakfasts have been a battle. I sit him down at the table, he sees his cereal, and he throws a fit. His language skills are to the point where he can verbalize concepts like "no" and "I want (unintelligible)." I run down the list of things he might want, he says no to all of them, so I send his whining to his room. Two minutes later he comes back, happy and ready to eat. Two minutes after that he remembers why he was upset in the first place, and I return him to his room.

I lock him into his car seat, and he starts screaming about wanting something. I offer him a toy from the stash littering the floor. He refuses. I continue offering from the stash, through planes, trains, and, uh, cars. He refuses each in turn. Two minutes later he calms down, and is content with stealing whatever Ian was playing with.

We take him into a store, and he starts whining. I offer to let him walk, and he throws a fit. I try to carry him, and he throws a fit. I throw him in a cart, and he throws a fit, but at least we're moving.