Bad Mommy - No Cookie

I am working with 2 1/2 year old Princess Magpie. She has this awful habit of screaming for what she wants, or screaming when she doesn't get it. And I have to admit that until recently with her baby sister napping a lot, we were in survival mode and would just scramble to figure out what she wanted and get it to her so that she would stop screaming and not wake up her sleeping sister. And she would scream in frustration if we wouldn't figure it out.

I know that this was wrong. She learned that screaming got her what she wanted. So now, I am working to reverse this habit. She is a smart cookie though. It has only take a couple of times of me waiting for her to use words for her to start using her words more. It will take time for her to completely get it and it is frustrating for her because she is only 2 1/2 and she doesn't always have all the words she needs to get her point across. But as her mommy, I can usually translate, point to what she is trying to express and say the word. When she isn't allowed to have what she wants, I say so in words and then move on. It is difficult but I am determined that this has to change. She is such a sweet, loving girl, and I want the world to see that, not her screaming.


Edited to add: the only good part of surviving this phase is seeing her excitement at being understood. Seeing her glory in getting her point across.

Supper tonight is a Ragu type pasta I came up with:

Ragu Bolognese-Style Pasta

Ingredients

* Salt and pepper
* 1 pound Penne
* 2 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
* 1 1/2 pounds beef or pork chopped into cubes
* 2 onion, finely chopped
* 2 to 3 large cloves garlic, finely chopped
*onion powder, garlic powder, chili powder, seasoning salt, oregano to taste
* 1/4 cup tomato paste
* 1 cup white wine
* 2 cups beef stock
* Freshly grated cheddar cheese

Yields: Serves 4 to 6

Preparation

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil, salt it, add the pasta and cook until al dente.
2. In a Dutch oven, heat the oil, 2 turns of the pan, over medium-high heat. Add the beef and brown well. Brown in batches if you have to. Add the onion, garlic, and cook until tender, 7 to 8 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste for 1 minute, then stir in the wine for 1 minute. Stir in the stock and simmer 1/2 hour or longer.
3. Toss the pasta with the meat sauce and arrange in a casserole. Top with a layer of cheese and broil in the oven to melt the cheese. (I stir one cup of cheese through the pasta, sprinkle the rest over the top and then just cover with a lid and let the steam from the pasta melt it.)