Today has been a most unpleasant parenting day for me, saved from utter ruin only by the fact that I had a good friend over for most of the afternoon and we had a wonderful visit.  Thank goodness for her!

This morning Curious J was extraordinarily fussy.  I don’t know what her deal was.  Unfortunately for her, this morning was the day that I decided it was time for her to learn to start holding her own sippy cup when she drinks, rather than me holding it for her.  She was not on board with this idea; it wasn’t a pretty morning.  When I would hold out the cup to my obviously-thirsty daughter and say “Grab the handles,” it pretty much always ended in the cup not reaching its final destination.  J would burst into tears, let the cup fall to the floor, and throw herself onto the floor in dismay and frustration.  I would then give it a break for a few minutes, and then try again, with similar results.  This happened many times.

Finally, as she was lying on the floor, finishing up another tantrum, I again tried to get her to hold her sippy cup.  This time, since she was already lying flat on her back, we finally experienced success, as she could easily hold the cup and drink from it.  And drink she did, at least two ounces at that once stretch, perhaps three.  I praised her mightily.  Later on, sitting in her high chair, she seemed to be more willing to hold her cup herself again.  Of course, what she REALLY wants to do with her sippy cup (or her bottle, when she gets one) is turn it upside down and watch it drip slowly onto her tray.  Then she takes her fingers and “paints” all over her tray.  Fun stuff.  I’m trying to put the kabosh on that.  J does not agree that her behavior is a problem.  Sigh.

Then this afternoon, while I had my good friend over with her two kids who are the same age as my two kids to exchange our presents and have a good catch-up, Lyd shocked me with her actions.  Near the end of our visit, she and her friend were playing outside in the fish ponds.  (The fish ponds are a remnant of the Chinese man who built the house and developed the property.  They have cracks in them now and we wouldn’t fill them with water anyway (breeding grounds for mosquitoes), but in winter, the lower ends of the ponds do fill up with a few inches of water.  It’s very exciting for Lyd to throw sticks and pine needles and rocks and whatever else into the water, part of her fascination with sticks and dirt and water.)  When she and her friend came back inside, her friend casually mentioned that Lyd had been throwing our cat, Pepper into the water.  “Three times!” he added.

WHAAAT???

I asked Lyd if this was true, and she quietly said “Yes.”

I couldn’t believe it!  My sweet, sensitive little girl, throwing our adorable, affectionate cat into the water?  Well, you can be sure that Lyd got a huge talking-to, which resulted in her losing her favorite Christmas present (a treasure chest of princess dress-up clothes) for one week.  Furthermore, I told her that if she pulls any stunt like this again where she is hurting the cat, all of her princess items go into the dumpster.  Hopefully that got the message through to her.

So, Curious J is throwing tantrums at 15 months (Lyd hardly ever threw tantrums, and when she did, they were quiet and non-dramatic), and my elder daughter is throwing the cat into the pond.

Hmm.

I am truly unsure as to how best to deal with these situations.  2009 is sure off to a rip-roarin’ start in our household; I’m dreading what new “surprises” tomorrow may bring.