Kid Training Manual

My daughter is three, so it's probably needless to say that we're engaged in a constant power struggle as she figures out how much control she has and where she belongs in the world.  Lou comes equipped with endless amounts of energy; so as I'm just trying to make it through this battle, she's already gearing up for the next one.  I don't want to be a mean mom, I'd love to just relax and enjoy our time together.  I'm young, I'm fun, can't my kid see me this way?  Nope.  Because when she does I become a door mat.

We got a rescue dog last May, and I've been taking some tricks from dog training books, and suprisingly (frighteningly) some of it applies to children too.

Take the concept of being the alpha.  Dogs and children listen when they know who's in charge, if there's any doubt as to who the leader is, chaos ensues. Lou listens wonderfully when she knows that I'm in control of the situation, no ifs, ands, or buts about it. But just let me take a moment to, oh I don't know, take a quiet moment on the couch to read, or perhaps even (gasp!) go to the bathroom alone. And what happens?

Anarchy. That's what happens. Because, apparently, I'm not the boss of her. But once I regain my alpha status, peace reigns over my Queendom.

Both dogs and children listen better when you say their name before you give a command.  Take for instance, "Please bring your toys back into the playroom, someone's going to trip over Cinderella's car".  Simple enough.  But unless I say, "Lou, please bring your toys back to the playroom, someone's going to trip over Cinderella's car," I get no response.  She's under the impression that I must be talking to the fish or maybe just talking to myself since I am the resident maid.

Like the dogs, Lou needs lots of exercise.  She needs to run around and be playful so that when it's story time, she's ready to sit still.  I can count on mischeif during extended periods of cold when we've holed ourselves up for a few days.

I wonder if Lou could learn to heel, that'd definately make the grocery store easier.

Of course I'll keep treating her like the individual child she is, I get it, she's not actually a dog ,and besides, I have no desire for another dog (yet). And although I prayed for a puppy, I did indeed give birth to a human child.  But even so, it never hurts to take a few pointers from experts who have been able to get someone, even if it's a dog, to take them seriously.