It's no wonder that she has a really hard time sitting still then. It's mostly only an inconvenience when we have to go to our various meetings and ceremonies like church and graduations. I feel like I've tried everything to get her to sit still, but nothing works! We color, play on the iphone, read books, eat snacks, play with every quiet toy she owns, and sometimes these methods work for a little while, but never long enough. We always end up out in the foyer because she tries to crawl under the benches or run onto the stage. When we take her out I'll try to keep her on my lap so she doesn't think being in the foyer is fun, but she is too strong and too good at wriggling out of my arms to even be forcibly held in my lap, and whenever I even try to do so, one of us ends up getting accidentally physically hurt! A couple times I even almost got my front teeth knocked out! Besides, she's so loud when I do that that it's completely unfair to the others in the foyer who are trying to listen to the speakers. We don't only have a hard time sitting still, but she's so active that we hardly can get her to sit still long enough to eat anything. I think that must by why she's in the ninth percentile for weight, but sixty-eighth for height. As you can imagine, it's a huge struggle getting her down for a nap or for bed too. Even though we don't necessarily agree with the "cry-it-out" method for various reasons that I won't discuss here, there have been times that we were so desperate that we HAD to just let her "cry-it-out" in her crib, but she would cry for hours and never fall asleep until we actually picked her up and held her in our arms.
The worst part about all of these issues that come with having a hyperactive child is that everyone is an "expert," and finds it necessary to "help" me. I can't tell you how many people come up to me and give me suggestions on how to "keep her in control." Some of them I don't even freaking know! So many different kinds of people are guilty of doing this: veteran moms with multiple kids, people who have a kid the same age or younger, brand new moms, and even people with no kids at all. Their advice ALWAYS starts with them telling me what they did with their child (or a child they know) and that I should try it too cause it worked for them. That's like saying, "My car wasn't running well either. We got a new transmission, and now it runs great! You should get a new transmission and your car will run great too." Every car, and every child, is different!!! What works for you, might not, and probably won't work for me, not to mention, there's just different techniques, some of which I approve of, and some that I don't. Some people like corporal punishment, some don't. Some like "crying-it-out," and others don't. It's just a style of parenting, and it's not right to judge someone for not adopting the same style as you because they don't agree with it. Most of the things people suggest for me to do, I've actually already tried anyway, so they're just being redundant.
Rather than trying to "fix" other parents' problems, why can't people worry about their own problems for a change, because I'm sure they have some, since no one is perfect. Sure, I realize that some people really are just trying to help, but I really don't want or need their help. Besides, it almost never comes across that they're just trying to help, rather it comes across that they think they know better of how to be a parent than I do, which is extremely insulting.
So unless you wanna look like a cocky, know-it-all, I'd advise that you keep your "helpful" suggestions to yourself instead of extending them my way (or any way honestly, cause I doubt others' feelings are all that different from mine on this subject), unless I ask you for your advice, or you've literally been in the exact same situation with your child who is extremely similar to mine (which is highly unlikely), and you really feel like what you have to say will help me in my impossible situation. And for heaven's sake, please never offer the same advice over and over again. If I didn't take it the first time, I definitely don't want it. If you do give me advice, you're gambling our friendship in doing so, because in general, people just don't like being told how to do their job, and my job is being a mom, so don't tell me how to parent. Thanks.
