What kind of day is it - Part 2 - A bad day

We have all known bad days. We know how they go.

1) Sometimes I know from the moment our HistoryBoy wakes up that it is going to be one of those days. I wake HistoryBoy for school and he starts crying that I am so mean and am forcing him to do something that he doesn't want to do. It doesn't bode well for his school day. I was right, when he gets off the bus, he has a pile of his classwork home as homework because he wouldn't complete in in-class as he should have. He is totally non-responsive to me other than one word answers and won't look at me. I send him to his room to "cool off until he is ready to do homework" He starts crying again that I am mean and only want him to do non fun things. Let's just say the day DID NOT get any better from there. Now this was one of those whiny, non-responsive days, which seems to be oxymoron but aren't. Unless he was crying about how mean I was I got no response out of him about anything, even the Titanic (which is one of HistoryBoy's favorite topics)

2) Or sometimes I need to go to the store to get dinner and there is no way to avoid bringing HistoryBoy. He is in I don't want to go mode but we have to so I take him and go. We get to the store and he lasts about two minutes before he decides he doesn't want to be there and melts down. He curls up in a ball on the floor and rocks back and forth. I am trying not to get angry because I know he didn't want to come with me but I didn't have a choice, but if he had give another 5 min I could have been done and out of here. I try to talk to him and he bats my arms away from him. He is too heavy for me to pick up but I fight with him and finally when he realizes what I am trying to do he climbs into the back end of the carts and curls up there and I get the 3 things I needed.

3) A change in plans or routine. (our most common type of bad days)
(ex #1) I wake up with a stomach bug and have to cancel Matt's after school plans to go to our community pool. When he gets home from school he melts down because I promised we'd go yesterday. Even though he knows I am sick today, I said we would go today so we have to go. "HitoryBoy I am too sick. I know I said we would go but I need to lie down. Hopefully I will feel better tomorrow and we can go then" He melts down, fully and completely, and I am unfortunately in no condition to try to comfort him. When he calms down he comes into my room and climbs on the bed and curls up in a little ball next to me. I turn the TV on for him and put on the history channel to cheer him up and he seems marginal cheered by it but he won't admit it.
(ex #2) 90% of the time unless HistoryBoy requests something else, he eats Banana Oatmeal for breakfast. I realize there is none left. I offer everything but the kitchen sick and I probably would have offered that if it was edible but all he wants is Banana Oatmeal and I have to tell him I am out. He flips out but that is what he wants. That is what he always has. I always have Banana Oatmeal. (Normally I have extra boxes on hand but this is coming after a week of me being sick so I didn't get to the store to buy extra and he eats two packs at a time) This meltdown last a while. To be renewed several times when I try to offer him something else that I have in the house to eat. Finally I decide to risk another meltdown, I ask him if he would like to go to the store to buy oatmeal and he wants to buy oatmeal. He starts to meltdown more. Ok any other bright ideas?
(ex #3) You make a mistake in what you say to you child, a slip of the tongue. I said I was going to Target. But I was really going to Kmart. When we get to Kmart, HistoryBoy is all weirded out but you said we were going to Target. When I try to explain I made a mistake he just gets more upset and nothing makes it better.

If you have ever experienced any of these examples, then you probably felt just as bad as your child. Sometimes angry, harassed and exhausted. But be assured there are other parents out there wrestling with the same struggles as you. I am one of them. You are not alone.

I would love to hear from you. Please feel free to leave a comment or email me at teenahope@gmail.com