2 Year Old Spitting in the House!

Another new skill to experiment with! How exciting! He's probably going to do this until the fascination wears off. I agree with Courtney that giving him a specific place, or even a dedicated container to aim for, is better than random experiments.

Keep in mind your little guy has no idea spitting is gross. Yet. Once he figures out a list of grossities, he'll have even more fun. Don't react with shock or expressions of disgust, or he'll enjoy that phase even more. It generally lasts for several years in little boys. Sigh.

It's a stage. My son is 2 and he's started spitting, and before I had him, I worked in childcare with 2 year olds. It's not a fun phase is it? =) The best thing we did in the classroom was give them a place to spit - for example, "You can spit in the sink." That way they weren't running around spitting all over their friends, or the toys, etc. I do the same thing with my son, and I also said he could spit outside. It's like if you just tell them no, it makes them want to do it even more, so if you give them a place where it's ok to do it, it allows them to experiment with this new "skill" and not get in trouble.

I am going through this right now with my daughter who is 2.5. She learned to spit when she is brushing her teeth and now she does it all the time. Drives me nuts! It gets worse when she is having one of her tantrums. It is getting better though. She doesn't do it as much. Like I said more when she has tantrums. It is just something new that they are learning. I know it's gross but it will subside.

My son went through that phase for a very short period, I nipped it in the bud quickly. He got it from watching baseball. Every time he did it in the house I told him he was not allowed to spit in the house. Sometimes if he legitimately had phlegm, I would walk him to the toilet and he could spit in the toilet or I would get a tissue for him to spit into. I taught him to respect his home. I would also drive home the idea each time he saw players spit that it is a dirty habit. I even explained that they do it because of another dirty and dangerous habit, chewing tobacco. I was consistent each and every time he did it with the same messages over and over again, and if he ever challenged me he got a time out. When any Yankee player would spit I would point out all the players who don't, who chew gum instead. It was harder when they were spitting out the sunflower seeds, but I still explained it to him and made him understand the most important thing of respecting his home. I hope this helps. Talk to him like a person, not like a 2-year-old. They understand more than most people give them credit for. And if they don't get it right away, with consistency, patience and understanding, they will. I hope this helps, good luck! - D.

If he sees your BIL often, I think you have your answer. If not, probably
one stage of the many to come! They do something that catches your
attention and it becomes an every day occurrence. Gotta love 2 year olds.

My daughter (2 1/2) is doing it too! She's been driving us crazy with it. We have no one who chews so she just decided to do it on her own. I think it's just that it's new, it makes fun sounds, and the spit is an interesting texture and who knows where it will go or what form it will create. LOL O to have the mind of a child. :o)

This might have started because of your BIL and maybe not. We don't have anyone who chews tobacco in our home. Gotta say I'm grateful for that since I remember family who had that gross habit when I was little. Yuck!

Anyway, if your son looks up to his uncle, it's possible that he could be doing it to mimic him. But not necessarily. My two year old has started spitting and I haven't seen anyone in the family doing that. Perhaps the older boys when they're outside?

I've scolded my son when I've caught him doing it inside (usually when he's mad about something) and threatened to take away something (toy, TV, dinner, whatever) or have a time out. I make him apologize and he gets the one freebie warning since he's two. If he does it again, I do whatever appropriate punishment I promised. That's enough to make him not do it inside. If he's outside or spitting in the sink like when he brushes his teeth, then I don't care.

If I heard him spitting from another room, I'd do the same thing. It'd make him think twice over spitting when I'm not around and it'd make him think I could see what he was doing when I wasn't around. The magic of mommies...scary! LOL