2003-11-21 Crying

She cries about every little thing that does not go her way. EVERY LITTLE THING Once in a while, I could understand. But when I say every little thing, I mean it. Example: Today at breakfast the girls were fighting over the light. My dining room light is on a dimmer and of course, one wanted it all of the down, the other all of the way up. They were going back and forth about it, so finally, I just went in and set it in the middle....a compromise of sorts. I swear to God that the only reason they each wanted it at opposite ends was just because the other one wanted the other way. I really don't think either of them seriously cared which way the light was. They're like that sometimes. Anyway, she starts crying...like full-fledged crying...tears, sobbing, whining the whole bit. Over a god-damned light. This is just one example of many many. Whether it's a huge thing, or something as small as a light setting, she break down in tears. As if whatever has gone wrong is the end of the world as she knows it.

I am at my wits end. The situation usually ends with me getting angry with her and sending her to a time out. Apparently though, the time-outs are not an effective form of discipline in this case since the untolerated behavior keeps happening. I have tried talking to her too...explaining that sometimes in life, things don't go as planned or as you had hoped that they would and that you just have to accept it and move on. I told her that even in my life, or in Daddy's we have things that go wrong and that it just didn't happen to her. I told her that once in a while, if something really, really upsets you, it's ok to cry. However, I also said that sometimes, you just have to be sad...without the drama of tears.

Does anyone out there have any suggestions?

She's such a sweet girl. Just about everything else is fine. She is occasionally a bit on the fresh side but that seems normal. This crying thing at her age(6) just doesn't seem right.

HELP!