Do you want a time out?

It's been a while since I've done a Levi post. So this post is all about Levi. He's a wild man. He reminds me of the 'class clown'. The biggest mistake you can make with Levi is to laugh at him. Once he gets a laugh out of the you, the behavior will never stop!

We're making good progress on the temper tantrums, too. They're not as often and not quite as intense as they once were. I've known for quite some time that my main problem with Levi was finding the right form of discipline. Levi seemed to be immune to any form of discipline. I tried everything~ spanking, hand smacking, time out, smiley/nonsmiley signs (therapist suggestion), take away favorite toys~ it just didn't work~ any of it. Actually, they all seemed to make the bad behavior worse. I was starting to doubt myself (I never thought it possible, either) thinking that I might never find an effective way to discipline him. Then one day in the midst of my desperation set off and sustained by Levi not listening AT ALL and basically just running wild, I just asked Levi if he wanted a time out. He immediately stopped the behavior and shook his head an adament no. I couldn't believe it. It was the first time he actually listened. Well, technically, he didn't listen- he made a decision. So now I am using this constantly and it's consistently working. It's almost as though he doesn't want to be 'made' to do something. He needs the decision to stop the behavior to be his own. I'm just so incredibly thankful that we've finally found something that will work.