Aaaaahhhhhhhh! Something similar happened last night w/ our 3 1/2yr old. He's been potty trained since about 3 but regressed the past 3wks and has pooped in his underwear. Since talking wasn't helping I went out and bought 3 more of his favorite Monster shirts (a different one for each day) and hung them up in the LR. I told him I was holding them hostage and each week he went w/o pooping he could pick one out. All wknd. he kept walking past them telling them how he was 'I GOING TO URN MY MONTAH HERT BACK!' (he has no volume control). So last night DS1 (the one that threw the rock and has been grounded) was very good in all ways and manners last night for DH. DS2 overheard DH telling DS1 that he noticed how attentive he was and did everything asked right away and that he really appreciated it. So DS2 pipes in "YOU LIKE ME TOO DADDY?! I DIDN'T POOP IN MY HANTIES FAH A WHOLE WEEK! I A GOOD BOY!" Love 'em to pieces! He woke up to a monster shirt today.

My Ds might be the same way (he's only 10, so no parking tickets yet, but forgetting his lunchbox or his homework at school - though never a book!). He is continually reading - even if we're going somewhere - we were taking the kids to a 6pm show at the circus 35-40 minutes away and he had to take a book in the car! I don't know how he can read in the car - I always got motion sickness when I tried. I think he stays up late at night reading and that's why he's so tired in the AM - send him to bed b/t 8:30-9pm, get him up at 7, and he's dragging. When he was about 4 (in preschool, but I forget whether it was PS1 or PS2 - he went for 2 yrs) he explained to his teacher how cell phones worked - he had seen the towers, asked about the antennas, and so I told him the basics. She was impressed - but that's what you get when you have an engineer and a computer geek for parents! He was always asking questions. Now of course he thinks Mom's the dumbest person on earth, always wants Dad to help him with homework - I had to convince him the other night that I really did know how to add fractions! Though by the time he gets to calculus I might need to brush up. DD is just more interested in animals and flowers than technology - and I'm not good at biology/botany so I have a hard time answering her questions.

Christy, your daughter isn't going through what my son has (he has an eating disorder...yes at age 3 and has had since two weeks after birth). My son goes to bed at 10 and sleeps to 9. That's what he needs for sleep :) he also takes a nap now (he didn't sleep more than 15 mins at a time the first year and never more than an hour at a time for the next year and a half so he owes me naps until he's 40). I think swapping out the meals (snack with you, "dinner" when you were doing that snack) is a great solution. But just for grins and giggles, I'll share some of my son's lessons (we spent three months in the hospital with therapists and doctors learning to eat). First, I wouldn't try the big guns since it sounds like your daughter is healthy. If this issue is causing a dangerous weight loss (more than 10%) big guns are necessary...but again ;) It does not sound like that's the case. So for the little guns :) Those hugs and napkin drops are control issues and you need to learn to be tough about them. If she drops her napkin, do not pick it up without the help being earned. Ie "dropped napkin...complaint" then you say, I'll pick it up after you take a bite. Do not address the issue beyond that. Don't ask her to take a bite again, do not pick up the napkin, do not give her a hug, do not laugh if she trys to preform her way out of the situation, just move along and eat, and even if she's screaming like a banshee...don't touch the napkin. Yes that's hard, but it's a big deal. That alone has made a huge difference in getting our son to eat (he's chronic fail to thrive so we do use the big gun techniques as well). If she takes the bite, immediately pick up the napkin and return it to her, or give her the hug or whatever it was that she was stuck on :) And say "Good Job taking that bite" with great enthusiam, and make sure this comes from both you and your husband. She's 3...that positive attention (on the YEA ON THE BITE reaction) is going to be a big deal to her. If she drops the napkin, wants the hug, whatever, do it all over again. We do it aproximately 40 times a meal..or did. The great thing about this technique is eventually they don't need the over abundant praise after each bite. And you don't end up with the power struggle. Many of the kids in our feeding program developed their problems in the toddler years. The stubborn little poops like control, and they can learn to turn off their hunger drive (my son has no natural hunger drive at all). You've nothing to worry about if this is only a dinner time thing...but if it extends to other meals, you have to nip it in the bud big time, and really, this is a good time to start so it doesn't extend as she continues to struggle to gain control of her life. There is no answer for every solution. Every child is different, and some have bigger issues than others. Bed times vary per child, and that's ok. Eating times do as well. And eating patterns, and even eating habits. We are so thrilled if our son eats voluntarily that I could give rip what he eats...that means we don't limit his food to "healt6hy food". If he wants an M&M while we're eating dinner (he joins us at the table late as well, but he only has his chosen snacks which he mostly plays with) we're happy to see him eat the M&M. He needs the calories. Unlike most children though, while he's allowed as many M&M's as he wants, he rarely eats more than a couple. Anyhoo, I'm a professional "mom" who's spent over a million bucks on my son's eating disorder, so I just wanted to share a trick that made a big difference for us (and one we saw work with all of the other kids as well). It's hard as a parent to listen to your child scream for whatever it is they want...but it's a control issue on your side too :) They can't always win (my son is 3 now...I totally get how much they try to win LOL) Best of luck!!!

ajsmama, thanks for your comments. the house was built in the 50s and the problem is not with the bedding touching the outlet but with it being only one of 2 outlets in the room, we will need to plug into it and it's an older outlet where the plugs sag out of it. My dh doesn't want the plugs from a light to be jammed against the bed, and since my son is only 3 1/2 we need a bedrail and a wall for him not to fall out so bed needs to be against wall...I guess we could have another outlet put in at some point, but not now. Polly929, I will be getting rid of the dresser soon and getting a long one to put in it's place against the wall the head of the bed in on. The curtains we have do come in red (Pottery Barn Kids)and you can't really tell but they are navy blue with colorful stitching in stipes. I just noticed they have curtains which match the bedding (see link) what do you think about that? Shannon01, the door is on the same wall as the bed. The closet wall is to the left of the door and the closet is not very long but takes up half of that wall. In the picture with the bookcase, the wall to the left is where the closet is, pretty much within inches of the left edge of photo. I like your ideas. I think I will keep the bed where it is. As for toy, we have a playroom so he doesn't really need any storage for them. Just books. And we just bought this bedding he picked out in January when he changed from a crib to a big boy bed. So that stays. Making a headboard out of the cards is a fantastic idea! Valinsv, thank you for considering the real reason behind my son's feelings. We actually have had a big year with lots of changes. We moved in October (just up the street, so same friends etc but still a move), I just had a baby, and he moved from a crib to a big boy bed. I'm with you in not wanting to make too many changes at once. The problem is that ever since we moved in here, his room has been in constant flux, now with the bed so I guess this is my last ditch effort to get it right. But I agree too much change is no good. So I think the biggest thing is the paint color. I will paint it a wheat/khaki. I will keep the bed where it is and move the animal cards down to make either a headboard or put on the wall next to his bed. And I will get a new longer dresser for safety reasons and put it next to his bed. But like you said, first the paint and then wait to see. We don't have room for a chair but we do cuddle up for a long while on his bed and talk and read at night. The problem is I don't feel warm and cozy in there, so there may be a real issue of design to address as well as being sensitive to is growing independence and feelings of fear. Wow. This has all become much more complex than when I began but it's good. I'm going to involve him in all of this too so that should help. So tell me what you all think of matching the curtains to the bedding? Here is a link that might be useful: Madras curtains