Normal 2 Year Old Behavior?

II would give it a bit more time until he has fully recuperated from his illness until you worry about it. Just think how cranky you are when you are not feeling well.

The child is still ill and he is in pain of some sort.If they don't find an ear infection, I would keep looking for answers.
All my kids had molars come in and never acted that way. The fact that he had a fever and is still coughing is proof he still has some type of infection.

Have you taken him to the doctor? Sounds like my sons when they have ear infections. During the day the pressure isn't as bad and they do ok, but sleeping and eating is where I notice the most changes. That and unexplained crying. Good luck!

Is he taking any medication for the cough? Was he on antibiotics? I've had a few medications that completely set my son off emotionally. It would take a few days of completely being off medicine for my son to get back to normal.

I would double check with a doctor to make sure he doesn't have any secondary infections from the cold. If he doesn't have any infections, just remember everything is a phase :)

Sounds very normal to me...sounds like he is checking out his environment with the food and testing limits. He may not be growing right this second (at least not enough to eat right now. That will change with the next spurt.) Not sure about the molars, but if they are coming in, they may be hurting more at night.

Can you pull him into bed with you when he wakes up in the AM? I'm a big fan of co-sleeping if you can handle it. However, some people really cannot sleep with their kids in the bed.

hi, sounds like you got all kinds of advice, thought I'd throw in my two cents, I think it could be an ear infection. My daughter has had so many of them, I think she may have one now as I write. What I've learned about them is they seem worse when the child is laying down, i.e night and morning. And your son waking up extra early and not sleeping well sounds like ear trouble, not to mention loss of appitite. It seems everytime Fiona gets a cold it ends in a ear infection. Hope this helps. I've been told if the child is not in too much pain, see if it goes away on its own, i forget the stats, but majority of them will go away untreated so they say, not my experience. If you do end up bringing him in and it is a ear infection ask for the ear drops, they really help....... I would even ask for some extra to keep in the cabinet for future use.
Best of luck.
M.

Hi K.. I would also recommend getting his ears checked for a possible ear infection. Sometimes the fluid from a cold can settle in the ears and not drain, allowing bacteria to grow. With my kids, they would be fine during the day (sometimes not even having a fever), then nights would be very difficult with frequent waking and crying. Kids can be pretty resilient and not act sick, even when things aren't feeling great. That might explain the loss of appetite, too - because it might hurt to eat. Good luck!

Sounds to me like he may not feel back to himself just yet. Sometimes kids get like that after they're sick. He also knows it won't fly at daycare! He may be after a little more attention when he's home b/c he doesn't feel 100% yet. Poor kid. Good luck!

There's a good chance that your bright little thinker really enjoyed the extra cuddle time he had when he was sick. Now he's feeling better (maybe not 100%) and wants that extra attention again! We go through this the first few days back to daycare after an illness or a vacation. Keep to your routine and in the next few days he should be back on track!

I agree with the other moms - and also the two year molars can be VERY painful!!! Good luck! =)

It actually sounds normal to me :O) Around 2-2.5yrs our kids will get their molars, so his discomfort could be cutting those teeth. I would "treat" him for teething to ease his discomfort.

The food thing, and only "with mommy thing" is normal for a 2 yr old. This is when he is beginning to find out our "reactions" to his own behaviors. Sure, he knows it's wrong, but he's looking for your reaction.....normal.

Try to remain calm (its hard sometimes), and use words that he can identify with.....don't throw food.

I remember worrying about my kids eating when they were little, and my mom always said, "he'll eat when he's hungry". There are times when my appetite changes, so I was able to assume it was like that. This eating thing can continue even when he's older, so don't worry too much about it. Your son will eat when he's hungry. I would just take notice to it, and look for any other signs that go with it. He could just simply not be hungry.

I remember feeling that I FINALLY had the perfect schedule, until my sons each hit 2yrs old :o) Then it kept changing. Their bodies are changing from baby-to-toddler, and with that comes a new sleep routine, new food routine, and new behaviors!

I wouldn't worry too much.....it's sounds like the "terrible two's" to me :o) all normal behavior.

You'll get through it :o)

~N.

Has he cut his two year molars yet? My little guy is 25 months. He has had a couple really rough days. Mostly mornings and nights. He had one really bad night where he cried for almost three hours. The next morning I noticed that he cut a bottom left molar! He is much better now. Unfortunatly we have three more to go!

I got this at 18 months after a bad cold too. We went to the Dr ears were fine but it turned out she was also getting her canine teeth. So it was a combination of feeling really bad and also just developmental. It lasted about 10 days and right now we are back to our smiley self until the next time.
C.

Sounds EXACTLY like my 2 year old. We took him to the doc Saturday (4th day of fever) and found out he had an ear infection. He's now on antibiotics. Call the doctor and good luck!

I think the other moms are right that part of it might be an ear infection and could also possibly be teething. However!! I think a big part of it is also just being 2. Especially the part about being happy and well behaved at daycare but pushing mom's buttons. My son is exactly like this, pretty good for everyone else, including Dad, but not so much for me. It is pretty upsetting at first but you have to suck it up and realize he is not a baby anymore and you will have to be more firm in your discipline. Our time out frequency increased greatly after the age of 2. You need to pick your rules, obviously hitting and throwing things are not acceptable but if you want to include yelling or climbing on/touching certain things then decide that as well. At first I put my son on time out any time he did one of these things. Now (about 3-4 months later), if I can tell he is just trying to get my attention and not being mean or spiteful I will ask him if he is making the right choice, he usually parrots back the "No" that I answered for him in the beginning and I ask him not to do it again. If he does it again then obviously he gets a time out. If he is throwing tantrums I have found that giving him 2 choices (both of which are acceptable to you) help us, most of the time. For example if it is time to go to bed and he is fighting you, his choices are does he want to walk to his bed or are you going to carry him there. 9 times out of 10 my son chooses to walk to his room but that 10th time I have to pick him up and carry him there kicking and screaming but at least he knows I mean what I say.

Good luck! I still get a decent amount of time with my sweet, loving boy when this terrible 2 year old magically seems to go into hiding for a little while, so hope is not completely lost but it is definitely a very different stage you are entering.