by Mandi M.

Created on: May 29, 2008

You can hardly blame children for throwing tantrums over getting dressed for the day. After all, I know many an adult who does the same thing occasionally. Does the phrase, "I have NOTHING to wear!" ring a bell? Insert stomping feet and dagger eyes at husband here. But let us try and make getting dressed a little more pleasant for our children shall we?

The best thing you can do to prevent a complete clothing meltdown is to involve your child in the decision making process. Now it won't work for every situation to give your child free reign over fashion. But for the most part it shouldn't really matter whether they have paired stripes with spots or put socks on over top of their stockings. Make getting dressed fun and an opportunity for them to show you what a big girl or boy they are. Give them a few options for shirts and pants, socks and under things, etc. and let them take some pride and ownership in their choices. Even when they need to dress up for an important function, if you can give them the choice between two or more outfits, they may just end up behaving like the little angel you want them to look like.

Make sure that you give yourself plenty of time for them to aid you in dressing them. If you are in a rush to contain your child in cotton, you will most definitely find yourself chasing a squealing and flailing-limbed streaker. And while a streaker may be a funny sight at a football game, it becomes considerably less humorous as an every day occurrence.

To spice up the routine, try a funny little song. For example (to the tune of "Hokey Pokey"), "You put your right arm in, you put your left arm in, you put your head in and you shake it all about.". You get the idea. Singing and dancing while getting dressed makes it an adventure for them, and believe it or not, reciting ridiculous lyrics can be a bit of a stress reliever for you. Especially if it means they are actually getting dressed!

Remember to show a little faith! Toddlers often want to do things all by themselves. They will generally offer less resistance if they see that you believe they can do it. They may not be able to do it all on their own, but allow them to do what they can and step in only when necessary. Praise them for their efforts and accomplishments. Although they may not win the title of Most Fashionable Toddler, I'm sure you will agree that a happily mismatched, CLOTHED child will bring much more peace to your mornings. Hey, you might even get to sit down and enjoy that blissful morning coffee. Well, maybe not. But one can hope!

Learn more about this author, Mandi M..
Click here to send this author comments or questions.