Scott? Is clever!

He's a wonderful father in all sorts of ways and Drew adores him. No surprise there.

But I love watching him handle toddler tantrum moments. When he's on his game, he is so very clever at derailing things.

For example, Drew starts shrieking or yelling. "Do I hear an outside voice?" That's now usually enough to stop it. It wasn't, until it continued and Scott said cheerfully, "That's an outside voice. I guess you want to be outside." And deposited him on the back patio. (It was cool and raining, but not very cold, and the back yard is fenced.) Scott didn't even go outside with him but stood just inside the door, in the nice warm house. Very soon Drew comes up and says "I'm being quiet." The second time it happened, the door literally didn't close before he said that. Now it stops before the door opens, most of the time.

Today Drew was flatly refusing to put on his clothes (having gotten out of his jammies, so starkers). "Okay, we'll just go shopping with you naked." "I don't wanna go shopping! I want clothes!" I missed whatever Scott said and then Drew wailed "I'll be cold!" I forget Scott's phrasing but it was basically that Drew was very smart, and okay, he could have clothes on. (They are now playing upstairs, shopping having been deferred. Drew started running around playing, the shopping isn't critical, and Scott is more than happy to let him tire himself out a bit!)

Those moments are brilliant, effective, and admittedly also comedy gold. :P