The fighting...

...does not seem to end lately. I think my kids have the worst cabin fever and are just bored to death inside this house some days. Every time it snows, Violet gets upset and whines that it won't be spring time for a very very long time. She is longing to go outside and ride her trike. I hear ya sweetie. Playing outside in the snow is really not that fun either. I tried bundling them up a couple times and going outside, but all Calvin wants to do is walk in it and he is bored with in minutes, and Violet wants to climb hills that the snowplow makes along side the road. Which is fine, but I can't be outside supervising her and deal with a frustrated Calvin who can't do the same things his big sister is doing. I'm not going to pull them in a sled when I'm almost 6 months pregnant. Violet has a strong sense of what is HERS (her blankies, stroller, baby, etc) and totally freaks out when Calvin touches her stuff. He knows exactly how to push her buttons too, and does it in the most calm matter with a straight face. They have rare moments when they both actually play together and do it nicely and laugh, but they are far outweighed by screaming, fighting, hair pulling, hitting, and yelling. They each have an agenda for whatever they're doing and it never seems to be the same agenda. Both of them end up getting disciplined for any given situation. Calvin makes her mad, Violet freaks out to a very dramatic degree...and she gets him back in her own way. One of their favorite things to do is "play trucks". They each grab a toy truck and push it the length of the hosue from the living room to the garage door, over and over again, but they each argue about who gets which truck multiple times. I just end up taking the trucks away all together until they can agree to play nicely. Its really, really hard to remain calm in the middle of all this fighting. I am trying my best to not get myself worked up to their level, because I know in my head that it is not productive, instead it is the frustration I feel from the way they are acting. They end up scared of me when I yell at them and its not productive. They might behave instantly because they are getting yelled at but its not teaching them good behavior. I find that when I force myself to chill out before responding to them they end up listening better (if I whisper they actually listen better!) and calm down quicker. The verse in Proverbs 15:1 applies to parenting more than I have ever realized: "A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger." I want to believe that this will get better as they get older. Ages 4 and 2 aren't seeming all that compatible at the moment.