Rational of a 3 year old

I had just put Noah to sleep and about 15 minutes later, I hear him crying...hard. This was our conversation that followed as I entered his room:

Me: "Noah, what is wrong?? Why are you crying??"

Noah: still crying.

Me: "Noah, it's time to stop. You are going to wake up your brother and be in big trouble. Do you need another kiss and hug?"

Noah: Shrugs his head "no".

Me: I go over and hug him anyway and kiss him. "Noah, it's time to go to sleep. Listen, I will not come in this room again. Not again."

Noah: Noah thinks. "Well, if I keep crying really hard, then I will throw up, and then you would have to come back in my room to clean it up."


By the way, if you know Noah at all, you know that throwing up comes very, very easy to him. Much to my chagrin.

Advice

Okay, calling all parents. I've got a question that I was thinking about throwing out there earlier today. I know you all have been in this situation, so give me your thoughts. Picture this:

Your child has thrown a fit for one of various reasons and it ended in an all out tantrum in which they were sent to their room. This happened to be at nap time and therefore they fell asleep eventually in bed. So here is your dillema, when they wake up, do you talk about it? Or do you let it go and carry on with life? I'm not looking for a "just this once" kind of answer, but what you think is best on a regular basis. A couple key factors in making your decision: a) You have a very smart 3 year old that will remember exactly what happened prior to him falling asleep. b) this sort of thing happens a lot.

:) Happy Advice giving!

What's a mother to do............

So I just had a wonderful day with Noah. We played at the local "Let's Jump" with our good friends, The Woodwards, and then had a surprisingly relaxing lunch at ChickFilet. But I am still amazed at how quickly a good mood can turn into a sour one............oh, not mine, Noah's. :) He was doing great, perfectly happy. He even wanted to hold my hand a lot today which is rare. But all of a sudden as it was time to waltz through the parking lot over to our car (which was parked far away because there was only parking at Burger King left) Noah decided to throw a fit. The craziness of it all is that I DON'T KNOW WHY. Some of you may understand this completely. But typically I know exactly what has caused Noah to throw a fit. This time, I wasn't so lucky. He proceeded to scream and lurch his body and refused to hold my hand. Which caused me to grab hold of his arm (don't you hate seeing moms do that?) FIRMLY and drag him along. Well, it had been raining, there were lots of cars around, and frankly not a discreet place to be dragging your son around. I kept yelling at him "what is wrong!!??? Get up NOW!" I even spanked him which of course only caused him to scream louder. I finally had to put my arm around his side and pull him to me and halfway-carry him across the parking lot all the way to the car with him crying and people looking. I actually don't care much for what other people think. But this time I realized other people were thinking, "Oh look at that. Another crazy toddler with a discheveled (sp?) mother dragging him along. I'm so glad I'm not her."

Well we got into the car and Noah continued to cry and cry. He's very dramatic if you don't know him and carries on for awhile. But I offered him his Sprite and he seemed to turn it off like a faucet. As we walked in the door, I felt exhausted and downtrodden (after only 15 minutes before feeling on top of the world!). Noah seemed to be keeping a very watchful eye on me. He knew mommy was mad. He knew mommy was unhappy with him. As I finished changing his diaper in his room he stood up and flashed me this big smile and wrapped his arms around my neck. It was so clear that he wanted me to be 'ok' again. It broke my heart to see him so in tune with me and hopeful that I wouldn't carry my bitterness and anger for much longer. It made me realize that I have no right to drag things on and on hoping to teach a 2 year old a lesson. It was clear he felt bad and was ready to move on. And so I did. But it made me think about how less motivated I am to "get over it" when it comes to other relationships in my life. Why do I hang on to hurt, disappointment, or annoyance when I could simply move on? Do I give Brian the same break I give Noah? Not usually. And how important my relationship is with my husband! Anyway, it's time I go lay down as I am still feeling the effects of the emotional drain I caused myself. But I hope this reminds me to cut everyone a break and realize that staying mad does not make a person learn a lesson any better .....usually. :) Your thoughts?