When Nathan was little I dreaded the seasonal transition to cold weather. He was impossible to deal with when it came to clothes. Long pants could not extend past the top of his ankle. Sleeves could not touch his wrist. And if the seam on his socks did not perfectly line up across his toes his day was ruined.
Thankfully he outgrew it.
Enter Bennett. Nathan part 2. In fact, he kinda hates clothes altogether. He will run around in underwear and a superman cape all day until we absolutely have to put real clothes on to go somewhere. Then we come home and he strips them all off.
But now it's getting colder. And rainy. And there is just no choice.
Yesterday it was time to get dressed and I pulled out a couple pair of pants. I didn't even bother asking him to wear long sleeves. One thing at a time. I gave him a choice of which pants and then it was ON. He dug in his heels and refused to cooperate. He wanted shorts.
The good thing was that we were not trying to get out of the house. We were staying home and playing outside. So I gave him the choice to put his pants on and join the fun outside with the rest of the family. Or sit on his bed until he was ready to put his pants on himself. He threw himself on his bed in the most dramatic display of despair.
I left the pants on his bed and walked away.
I fully expected him to stay there until we came back in but NOPE. In just a few minutes he came out with his pants on PLUS a smile on his face! I was so proud of him.
I'm pretty sure if I had pressed the matter and fought with him, he would've panicked and refused even more. I'm glad I was able to give him space and time and share the control. He made a good choice and I'm hoping we can build on this for next time. Otherwise, it'll be a long winter!
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