So as many of you know I don't hold many punches. This hub is definitely about not holding punches! My daughter has turned 3 and everyone told me to be careful of the Terrible Twos, but NO ONE mentioned the Horrible Three's to me! How in the world did that happen?!?!?!

Somehow in the past month my daughter has become demon child. Now let me clarify here a little! I love my child, she is the best thing that has ever happened to me. For the past 3 years we have worked (very hard I might add) to teach her to be self reliant, independent, and self sufficient (as much as possible). So I am not sure how I did not see what was coming, I guess that is parenthood!

So what happens to a child when they turn 3? Here is what we have seen.

They start to gain full autonomy. They realize that just because we say to do something, their little bodies don't necessarily have to do that. Now, as parents we know that, yes, they do have to do what we say, but they start to test it immediately. So the "trying" stage comes into play. The key here is to realize what is happening early. We had a little SNAFU with having to move at the same time that this started, so frankly I didn't realize it for what it was for a week. I attributed it to the move. Others have told me they have attributed it to their child being sick, or a move, or any transition, when the reality is they would do it anyway. We have to realize it and address it to effectively handle it!

So how do you handle it? Let me assure you, no actress on TV has anything on my daughter when it comes to tugging on the heart strings! She can pull out EVERYTHING in the book. From hungry, thirsty, potty, wanting to go back to the old house, hugs, you name it. And you can't help but feel like you are torturing them, BUT if you don't set the guidelines now, youa re looking at a LONG road ahead of you.

The thing we have to keep in mind is that we are not torturing our children by putting them to bed, wanting them to eat the right foods, and in general be good, respectable, little people. I use the term little people for exactly what it is, they are little people.

We do not want them to be robots and follow everything that everyone tells them, this is why this stage is just so hard. We want them to be strong, independent, caring adults and the only way we can do that is to stand firm and help guide them through this stage. Personally my husband and I have to take it in shifts. She will wear you down if you don't! The problem is if you give in after 45 minutes they will KNOW that if they keep it up you will eventually give in and the time just keeps getting longer and longer.

But, know that this stage will pass, and the more firm you stand the better off you will be. Now, let me clarify that! I am not saying to spank, hit or abuse the child in ANYWAY! I have found that a quiet, calm, assertive voice is more powerful than anything else we can do. Another thing that works for our daughter is that she is disappointing us. This does not work for every child but it is a great avenue for us!