Raising a child is hard and can take a toll on even the best parents. Children can bring a lot of joy but they can also be very frustrating, and it's okay to give parents room to vent. Sometimes, try as they might, nothing they do can calm a child down.
And that seems to hit the hardest during the toddler stage, when children really, really don't know how to handle their own emotions. They'll yell and kick and scream, sometimes for no reason at all.
What's up with that, right?
Parents shared their stories with us after Redditor mirarom asked the online community:
"Redditors with toddlers, what’s the most recent illogical breakdown they’ve had?"
"My son was basically upset..."
"My son was basically upset I missed the tantrum he had started to throw for grandpa... He was doing his face in the carpet, kicking feet, over the top fake crying when I guess he realized he was missing something."
"So he came upstairs, grabbed my hand, huffed and puffed angrily while walking me directly next to Grandpa, totally positioned me for the show, and got right back into meltdown mode. Looking up every so often to make sure we were still watching it."
"I asked my dad what initially set him off though. He said he shut off his own show and didn’t know what else to do."
Danilixsaaur
Awww, he sounds like he was confused.
Or maybe a drama queen.
But why not both?
"Because the imaginary door..."
"Because the imaginary door on his imaginary fire truck wouldn't open, so he was stuck inside."
napana
Aww, but it was absolutely real to him! It's cute... but also annoying. Sorry, kid. Get a real one.
"My youngest was mad..."
The enraged, sobbing wail from the back seat of my car: 'He's looking out my window.' "My youngest was mad because his brother was looking out of 'his' window instead of the other one."
RavnNite
Tell them that you're driving and that it's your car and that they're actually your windows!
"My girlfriend-at-the-time texted me when she was looking after her 3 year old brother. "Josh is crying because he doesn't want an ice cream. He already finished eating it. This was 15 minutes ago.""
KingGumboot
Wow, this kid doesn't realize how ridiculous he's being, does he?
Well, bless his heart.
"He wants..."
"He wants to put a box on my head but it's broken and keeps falling off. So apparently it's ruining his playtime."
Ccaster0620
He sounds very particular!
"Took the car down..."
"Took the car down to the body shop to get the side panel that he crunched buffed out. The car won't be ready until Wednesday but he wanted to go back downtown to party with his roommates tonight. He's 22."
optiongeek
Okay, this one is an exception to all the toddler stories... or maybe not. It sounds like he never grew out of the toddler stage.
"8 year old sister was looking at her. It was just a glance, but my 3 year old went into a f**king rage."
everybodyknowsdikbut
This reminds me of that incredible scene from The Favourite.
"Did you just look at me? LOOK AT ME! How DARE you, close your eyes!"
"My little kraken just slept... after a raging tantrum because i did not let him chew on the connected cables. I'm just trying to keep you alive buddy, I swear."
O_oHaniG
He doesn't believe you!
"First..."
""First: his dad left for work. Second: he dumped out the box of goldfish crackers. Third: I picked up the goldfish crackers. Fourth: it wasn’t the right episode of Paw Patrol. Fifth: I won’t let him eat shoes."
Autumn_Tea95
You're just restricting him from living his life, man.
"They wanted..."
"They wanted another chicken nugget, so I gave them another chicken nugget. Breakdown."
gloomyquelledbasket
Children are so odd. Sorry!
These stories might make you think twice about being a parent. But if you can get through the toddler stage—particularly the "terrible twos"—you'll probably be fine.
Have some stories of your own? Tell us more in the comments below!