Cuz You've Had a GOOD day?

Today has actually been a pretty good day! And I owe it to SuperNanny. I used to make fun of parents who were on that show. And last night I was flipping channels and that is all that I could find to watch. The parents drove me nuts (as I predicted they would), but I started to see some startling similarities in Hannah's behavior and those horrible children. Granted, Hannah is only TWO, but if I don't do something about her terrible behavior now then she will turn into one of those children. And I will be the pathetically stressed-out mom on SuperNanny... you know, the one who majored in Marriage, Family & Human Development and can't control her children. I decided this morning that I was going to set limits with Hannah and not let her treat me badly. I will NOT allow my two year old to hurt me or to run my life. So, when I was ready to leave the house today, we did a count-down to leave time. It really helped. Instead of telling Hannah to get ready to go, I gave her more manageable, specific tasks to accomplish. When we got to the mall, instead of giving her the option of walking, I just pulled her out of her carseat and plunked her little behind in the stroller. I sound like crazy strict mom, I know, but I tried to make everything fun and more like a game. I gave her specific things to remember like that we needed to get batteries at WalMart. And we needed to find teriyaki sauce... wanna hear something funny? ask a 2 year old to say teriyaki sauce! :) I got a great laugh at that one. Hannah did really well for about 2 hours and then she started getting cranky. I made the mistake a Ross of not getting a cart and she started running wild, so that was my fault, not hers. And Hannah is a shoe-fanatic! She LOVES to try on shoes. I found her a really cute pair of brown leather OshKosh sandals for $10 at Ross. She wanted to put them on and wear them out of the store. But I hadn't paid for them yet and they are still a tad too big so I wouldn't let her wear them and she threw a tantrum, but considering how long we had been out and what time of day it was, she did remarkably well. We were using a chore chart for a few weeks and it really helped, but then I got lazy. So, I need to make a new chore chart and really stick with it. Hannah doesn't really have "chores" but she has to help Mommy make Hannah's bed (she hands me the pillow and the sham and then puts on her stuffed animals), help Mommy put away the dishes (the silverware, minus the knives, and her plastic plates and the tupperware), be cooperative in the bathtub, read scriptures/say family prayers at night & behave while we are doing it, etc... She gets a smiley-face for every job that she does willingly and a sad face for jobs that don't get done because she doesn't cooperate. It was great, but I think she is bored with it already. So I am going to get a treasure chest that I fill with little toys and candy and after she gets a certain number of smiley faces she can pick something out of the treasure chest. Anyway... hopefully things will keep getting better as she gets a little older. She is so funny and so smart. I love that little munchkin!