When your toddler whines all day your day can really go downhill! Trust me, I know. I have a toddler who is a bit of a whiner, drama-queen. She is described as a “spirited child.” Reminds me of this picture my best friend posted to Facebook. I can laugh today, my “spirited child” is resting in bed, eyes closed, probably dreaming of lipsticks and purses. I do have days though, that the “spirited” toddler whines all day and all I want to do is run away! If you’re a mom you probably understand how I feel!
Honestly, I don’t remember my first child (my son) being such a difficult toddler. I do remember that I was more stern with him and I really need to reach back and use those techniques so I can impress them upon my now whiny toddler! 
How to Deal when your Toddler Whines All Day
Do not give in. You know how this happens. You hear that little whiny voice and you just want it to stop. So you hand over the candy, the game, your favorite lip balm (that may only be me) and POOF the whiny voice is gone for now! Unfortunately, this just teaches your child to whine more. When we give in to their whining, we enable them to whine some more.
Model how you want your child to speak. Instead of giving in to whining, let your child know how they should ask for what they want or need. I tell my daughter, “Use your words,” or “Say it like this.” This gives her a good example of how to use her words instead of whining. If the whining continues I will walk away, start a new task or continue asking her to use her words.
Be patient. I think this is the hardest step for me. Patience does not come easily or readily but I have greatly improved! My secret weapon to be more patient? Prayer! For real. It works. For a while there I felt like I had to pray daily for patience. Every single day was a new issue to test my patience: marker writing on the wall, using the dinner bowl as a hat, trying to throw Easter baskets out the window, you name it, she’s probably tried it! Looking back, I can laugh, in fact I am laughing now! I mean, WHY did she try to throw her Easter basket out of a moving vehicle? Who knows! You can see the verses I lean on when I get overwhelmed here.
I think the best thing to remember is that this will pass. Our toddlers will grow up too fast and maybe one day we’ll miss these whiny moments. The greatest thing we can do is support our children and teach them the right way to behave. Because the last thing I want to deal with is a whiny toddler now and then a whiny teenager later!
This post is part of a series called #AskAwayThursday I’ve teamed up with several other moms to answer this same question. This way you get the perspective of not just one mom but many! Go check them out 🙂
Rachel, the awesome mom over at Don’t Call Me Supermom
Jen giving great advice from Heaven Not Harvard
Monica, a mom of 5 boys, answers this question at A Mother Loving Mess
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Prayer is a big one. Sometimes I feel like I’m not doing anything right, then I pray and ask God to show me how to parent my kids. This was great advice!
Healing Mama recently posted…Overweight and Pregnant:How To Have A Healthy Pregnancy
Thank you! I rely on prayer and a positive attitude to get through my day!!
All good except the missing the whiny part….never never never. It is just one of those character building things. 🙂
Rachel Osborn recently posted…“How do I make my toddler stop whining?”
Oh, I think we both had similar thoughts here! My daughter is also a spirited child! But it really helps to remind myself that just being calm and assertive and consistent will in the end make a difference.
Jennifer DeFrates/Heaven Not Harvard recently posted…How to Teach your Toddler to Quit Whining: Ask Away Thursday
Just letting my spirited child know that whining doesn’t get him anywhere consistently and calmly has worked for me and now thankfully he has grown up enough to understand it.Very sound advice!
Daisy Suman recently posted…10 questions you must ask yourself before becoming a stay at home mom
Great advice, Crystal. Loved it!!! The translation up there was so darn funny!!
Monica recently posted…Why Mothers Should Have Time To Themselves
So true! Patience is also the hardest step for me too. Slowly learning, but definitely very trying at times 😉