Declan seems to have changed recently in regards to how he deals with his anger and frustration. He's somehow gotten it into his head that saying really hurtful things when he's mad (like when he tells me he hates me or he's not going to let me hug or kiss him anymore, etc.) is, well, hurtful. He's turned a corner in that, and I'm happy to see it.
Of course, he being five, he's got a limited ability to express himself and that combined with his control over what he says when he's angry has turned out some funny moments. Like the time when he furiously told me he wasn't going to let me do anything for him anymore. (Me: Fine. I won't do a thing for you. No problem. Declan: NO! Wait! You can do things for me again!) Or the time when he got so angry with me he assured me he was never going to love my lasagna again. (About an hour later after his angry switch had been flipped back to happy, he sought me out to give me a hug and reassure me that he does indeed love my lasagna.)
He tries hard to control himself when he's angry. Instead of hitting, he's moved on to acting like he's going to hit. Sometimes he just stands there and fumes loudly, eyebrows furrowed, nostrils flared, breathing heavily in and out, much like an angry, angry dragon that's about two seconds away from breathing fire. There's definitely some work to do, and he'll probably have to grow up a bit we make more significant strides. But he's trying. And we talk and talk and talk about how to appropriately deal with being angry or frustrated. He knows what to do when we discuss it, but in the moment the emotions run hot and it's not so easy to keep calm. And I'm all, "Believe me. I totally get it."
