Whine

So have you seen that mom? The frazzled mom dragging a whiny toddler around the store--clearly weighing the equally unpleasant choices between dropping all her hastily selected items and making an immediate exit, or ignoring the whinings of her child that have every minute gotten louder and more persistent and embarassing so that she can complete her purchase? Yeah, that's me right now. Well, when I'm out with Ava (Aiden's an angel comparatively right now). It's gotten to the point where I suspect that Ava just whines for the sake of whining. Like it's a habit. When I try to ascertain what it is that will stop the god-forsaken noise ringing in my head, the exchange usually goes like this:
Me: You want wa-wa?
Ava: Yeah. No.
Me: No wa-wa?
Ava: No wa-wa.
Me: Are you hungry?
Ava: Yeah. Noooooooooooo!!!!!!
Me: You want to go nigh-night?
Ava: NOOOOOO!!! No nigh-night!
Me: You want pretzels?
Ava: Yeah. No pretzels!
Me: Shush...
Ava: Stop it!

Yes, this is Ava's current favorite phrase. Accompanied with a smack on the arm nearest her. I am so frustrated with her. At this point, we've decided that when she hits she needs to have a sort of time out, which for her is basically being put down and not paid attention to for a moment. That frustrates her and escalates the whining to a full-out tantrum, but it stops the hitting. Then, she's calmer when we pick her back up to continue the interrogation and we usually can figure out some compromise between us. At any rate, I've figured through this process that she doesn't really know what she wants and is whining for the sake of whining...a form of expression if you will.

Today, at the Mexican restaurant she was doing it again but this time I knew it was because she wanted to pour the sugar into her cup of water and I wouldn't let her. So when I dared to put the sugar out of her reach, she regarded me with a half eye-roll and half closed-lid I know you didn't look--completely silent. It was as threatening a look one could get from a soon-to-be two-year old. My friends saw it and busted out laughing because it was so teenagerish they couldn't believe it. Radley and I asked for the check immediately, but it was too late. The entire restaurant was privy to the drama at our table within seconds and we were instantly the parents of the out-of-control toddler. See ya! Until 2011!!!