Isn’t it strange that no matter how old your children are, you can still remember their temper tantrums as if it was only yesterday? What I also find amazing is how does a two year old know when the best possible time to throw a tantrum presents itself? I’m sure we have all seen that advert on TV, where the Mother prevents her Son’s tantrum by getting in there first, there was many a time when it had certainly crossed my mind. But society accepts it from a cute little toddler, but not from a Mother on the edge. Why also are they referred to as the terrible two’s? All my children got into their stride when they were 18 months old and were on a roll well into their teens, or am I just very unlucky!!

My Philosophy was to ignore bad behaviour, and with my first two children I thought I had this mothering thing well and truly sussed. I would calmly move my screaming little angel away from the scene of his crime, make sure he was safe, and let him get on with it, once they realised Mummy wasn’t going to react, they would slowly return to something resembling sanity, and after a hug peace would once again return to the family. All sounds quite simple doesn’t it? Only I forgot to tell my little angels of the rules, once they knew things weren’t going their way, they would then very cleverly find another way, and of course Mummy would take a while to realise she had been caught out once again.

I wasn’t very clever in my baby planning as one child reached the dreaded tantrum phase I would then present them with a sibling, so a new born baby, a mini devil and sibling rivalry, oh what great times they were. Out of all my five children, my eldest was by far the gold medallist at tantrum throwing. He didn’t just stop at that, he was very big into mischief of all types. Living in a flat his favourite game was throwing missiles over the balcony and scaring the natives below, but to give him credit he was a good shot.

It took me years to work out why tantrums held at home and in front of family and friends where never quite as bad as those held out in public, around perfect strangers. After five children and a lot of very red faces, mumbled apologies and trying to disappear into the ground, it suddenly dawned on me, what fun would it be if these strangers knew that really that screaming life form was actually a very sweet, funny articulate little child.

I think temper tantrums are one aspect of parenting that has connected all Mothers, when your out, and you see a very harassed looking Mother, you can’t help but give her a sympathetic smile and a secret message will pass between you, ‘hang in there, it will pass’, yeah eventually.