I am part of an AWESOME mommy panel with Cassie from Two In Diapers and Julie from Naptime Review, and a fabulous group of moms! Each Saturday, we will bring you fresh new ideas and advice about motherhood.
Coming on December 22nd, we will discuss:
At what age and how did you begin disciplining your babies?
At what age and how did you begin disciplining your babies?
Now on to this week's topic!
Welcome! I'm Julie over at Naptime Review. I am a mom of 2 wild, crazy and beautiful girls. My oldest turns 4 on Christmas Eve and my baby is 15 months old. This is how I fight the battle of getting my preschooler dressed:
Well, every morning after my 4 year old wakes around 8 a.m., she comes in and quietly wakes me with a kiss. We then go into her room and she asks, "Mom, you are so wise and know what the weather is like today. Could you please advise me on what is appropriate to wear? I can’t wait to get out of my pajamas and start my day.” I then give her an adoring look and find her a well-matched, unworn, weather-appropriate outfit for the day. We quickly get dressed and brush our teeth without any arguing. All the while, the baby is quietly entertaining herself in her own room.
So do you buy any of that? It is all a BIG FAT LIE! Our mornings are hectic, stressful, and sadly some screaming and yelling takes place. Some things that have helped elevate some stress (although not much) are: laying out our clothes the night before, giving her only 2 choices, and not letting her leave her room until she is dressed... but the biggest thing that has helped reduce stress is to not sweat it so much. I try my best to keep my child well groomed and in matched clothes but sometimes, I just give up! As long as her teeth are brushed and she is prepared for whatever the weather is, I did my job. So what if she is wearing a Christmas dress to preschool? So what if she is wearing the same thing she wore to school last week? So what if her shoes or leggings don't match her outfit? I just have to let it go…
Anyway, I can't wait to read all the other tips and hopefully implement some great stress reducing strategies. As my daughter and I are fighting over wardrobe, I think, "Oh man! She is only 4. What is life going to be like in 10 years??" I am in trouble! I better educate myself or start drinking.
Hi! I'm Cassie from Two In Diapers, and I'm a mommy to three sweet babies, ages 4, 3, and 18 months. This is how I fight the battle of getting my preschooler dressed:
Lucky for me, this isn't much of a battle in our home! My littles are neither picky about the way their clothes feel nor the way they look.
Bentley (age 3) occasionally complains that something is itching or hurting, which I think is mainly because of his eczema. In that case, I try to fix whatever the issue is. If it can't be fixed, I let him change. It happens so rarely, though, that it's not really an issue.
Emily (age 4) only sometimes has strong opinions about her clothing. I've learned to try to give her choices whenever possible, but to only give her choices in which I would be ok with any of the options. For example, I will pick out two or three shirts and two or three pairs of pants, and then let her know that she gets to pick what she wears - out of the choices I've laid out. I feel like this helps build her confidence and decision-making skills while alteaching her that I trust her ability to choose for herself.
I also try to let her pick out her entire outfit all by herself on the days that we aren't going anywhere. She loves those days!
My
son Christian is in first grade this year, and he's in the stage of
wanting to pick out his own outfits (which is a whole other battle!), but
he takes so long to actually get dressed and ready that we end up
leaving the house late almost every morning. Last week I attempted
waking him up 10 minutes earlier and insisting he keep his eye on the
time while eating breakfast. So far so good! He's learning tell time, so
it's fun for him!
As for my toddler, Isabella, getting dressed is becoming a daily battle. She is a wiggle worm and the changing table she once fit so perfectly on, is becoming a thing of the past. I sternly tell her that she could get hurt and keep my cool. Keeping calm is key! Can you relate? What's worked for you?
Getting your preschooler dressed: Drawing the battle lines
Here is what Mom Connection shared:
Well, every morning after my 4 year old wakes around 8 a.m., she comes in and quietly wakes me with a kiss. We then go into her room and she asks, "Mom, you are so wise and know what the weather is like today. Could you please advise me on what is appropriate to wear? I can’t wait to get out of my pajamas and start my day.” I then give her an adoring look and find her a well-matched, unworn, weather-appropriate outfit for the day. We quickly get dressed and brush our teeth without any arguing. All the while, the baby is quietly entertaining herself in her own room.
So do you buy any of that? It is all a BIG FAT LIE! Our mornings are hectic, stressful, and sadly some screaming and yelling takes place. Some things that have helped elevate some stress (although not much) are: laying out our clothes the night before, giving her only 2 choices, and not letting her leave her room until she is dressed... but the biggest thing that has helped reduce stress is to not sweat it so much. I try my best to keep my child well groomed and in matched clothes but sometimes, I just give up! As long as her teeth are brushed and she is prepared for whatever the weather is, I did my job. So what if she is wearing a Christmas dress to preschool? So what if she is wearing the same thing she wore to school last week? So what if her shoes or leggings don't match her outfit? I just have to let it go…
Anyway, I can't wait to read all the other tips and hopefully implement some great stress reducing strategies. As my daughter and I are fighting over wardrobe, I think, "Oh man! She is only 4. What is life going to be like in 10 years??" I am in trouble! I better educate myself or start drinking.
Lucky for me, this isn't much of a battle in our home! My littles are neither picky about the way their clothes feel nor the way they look.
Bentley (age 3) occasionally complains that something is itching or hurting, which I think is mainly because of his eczema. In that case, I try to fix whatever the issue is. If it can't be fixed, I let him change. It happens so rarely, though, that it's not really an issue.
Emily (age 4) only sometimes has strong opinions about her clothing. I've learned to try to give her choices whenever possible, but to only give her choices in which I would be ok with any of the options. For example, I will pick out two or three shirts and two or three pairs of pants, and then let her know that she gets to pick what she wears - out of the choices I've laid out. I feel like this helps build her confidence and decision-making skills while alteaching her that I trust her ability to choose for herself.
I also try to let her pick out her entire outfit all by herself on the days that we aren't going anywhere. She loves those days!
My name is Tricia from Mama Marchand's Nest. I am the mom of N (her name on my blog) who will be three in
March.This is how I fight the battle of getting my preschooler dressed:
I
don't fight the battle. *waves the white flag of surrender*. I learned
to "not engage the crazy" (a brilliant phrase I heard from Allison of OMyFamily)
early on when it comes to N's clothes, primarily her shoes, and it has
paid off! For a few months, she was wearing all kinds of crazy
mismatched clothes to the park or to playdates. Now, she picks out her
own clothes (and they usually match!) and knows exactly what shoes are
appropriate for the season. Now, this might change as she gets older but
for now, I'm thankful.
My name is Fotini! I blog
over at Glamorous
Affordable Life. I am the mom of ( Isabella 19 months and Christian 6
years). This is how I fight the battle of getting my preschooler dressed:
As for my toddler, Isabella, getting dressed is becoming a daily battle. She is a wiggle worm and the changing table she once fit so perfectly on, is becoming a thing of the past. I sternly tell her that she could get hurt and keep my cool. Keeping calm is key! Can you relate? What's worked for you?
My name
is Kristen from The Mrs. & The Momma.
I'm the momma of three girls (ages 7, 5, & 3) and a little boy (18 months). This is how I fight the battle of getting my preschooler dressed:
Thankfully, my children prefer to wear clothes, so actually getting
them dressed isn't much of a problem. It's what to wear that creates
havoc in our household. It depends on the child, but getting my
preschooler dressed can either be simple or difficult. Really, it comes
down to whether I perceive my children's appearance (clothes-wise) as a
reflection of me....which changes depending on the occasion. For
everyday types of situations (when it doesn't really matter what she
looks like and if people judge me, let them judge), I allow my
preschooler to dress herself (as long as it's weather appropriate). For
the most part, giving up this responsibility gives her freedom of
expression while also avoiding any head-butting between us. If we are
going some place where I DO care what my children look like, I give
choices....both of which I'm okay with them wearing.
Having four children who are all so different, one
of the biggest struggles in the past have been clothes. They don't fit,
they itch, it's the wrong color, etc. But implementing the above
strategies has significantly decreased the wardrobe-related meltdowns in
our family. And really, there will be much larger fish to fry down the
road...so I'd like to save my energy for the teenage years.
Your Turn:
How do you fight the battle of getting your preschooler dressed?
Leave us a comment or share the link!
Love to hear from you!
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