advise please!!

[mummacat]

my 21mth old little girl will not let me cut her nails....
she chucks the biggest tantrum when i get the clippers out
i havent cut her with the nail clippers so it cant be that...
im at my wits end as her nails are that long they make me worried whenever she goes near my little baby neices and nephews....
any suggestions on how to stop it being so stressful for both of us :eek:

[lukaelmo]

Hey mammacat,

I only have one 7 month old so I am not really in the position to be handing out advice but... what if you did it while she is sleeping?

[draught]

We have had issues with it - I turn it into a game - "this little piggy" and "round and round the garden" are two favourites. I sit them on my knee (one at a time) and have one arm across their body from over their shoulder down (if you know what I mean) so that I am holding them firmly and we keep going and singing and get through it - and with time it has improved a lot. Good luck!

[*Sal*]

I agree with lukaelmo - I cut my kids nails when they are asleep - well DD is 5 now so she co-operates, but DS wakes up with a manicure ;)

[munsket]

my 21mth old little girl will not let me cut her nails....
she chucks the biggest tantrum when i get the clippers out
i havent cut her with the nail clippers so it cant be that...
im at my wits end as her nails are that long they make me worried whenever she goes near my little baby neices and nephews....
any suggestions on how to stop it being so stressful for both of us :eek:

Hi Mummacat,
I have the same problem with my 8 and a half month DD. My sister-in-law said to just hold her little hand & cut them & she'll learn to not fight you. But my DD is strong & I don't want to hurt her or make an issue out of it so last week my DH & I snuck into her room about an hour after she feel asleep with a torch in hand & did a quick snip. It was so easy, I wish I'd thought of it earlier!! & she had no idea, little possum.
Hope this helps you out :fingerscrossed:

[uptheduff]

I don't use nail clippers, i'm too scared i'll cut off my boys fingers lol. I can't even trim the dogs nails lol. So i use an emery board instead, it's heaps easier, and there's no risk of accidental choppings!

[mumof03]

I use baby nail cutters. They don't open up as far as adult ones and are easier to use. I have made a game with my 3 year old. He gets the cutters first to cut his own nails (as they are tight to close he can't get them closed enough to even cut them at all). Once he has "cut his own nails," it is then time for me to just trim them up nice and neat. As long as he gets to do it first, he is happy for me to then do it.

Failing that, do them when they are asleep, but not if they are light sleepers. Or you could do it while they were engrosed in something else like a show on tv or a game.

[bayandme]

I have a two year old ever since he was about one he screams when I'm am cutting his nails like I'm cutting his throat I tried everything and he is so strong as well. My friend used to cut his nails sitting in the pram outside playing with some of her daughters toys it worked then but now I don't speak to her so it takes my husband and me both to hold him down and I have to cut his nails it's a struggle but it works and he gets over it after a while..

Also if I have to do it myself I just wrap my legs around him he stands up and I just try to quickly do it. I don't think there is any easy answers good luck!!!!

[Foxy]

I find the TV a great distraction (especially if it is at a time when it is not normally on), if I am quick, I can usually get them all done! :)

[SnoozesWithCats]

I let the Small Girl be a little in control of what's happening. So I get her to choose the next finger - also, she "helps" cut my fingernails first, this has cut down considerably in Woe (I don't think I could get her while she's a sleep - she's just too much of a light sleeper).

Also, if you're looking for a bribe .... well, let's just say, dd has just discovered NAIL POLISH! :eek: :D

[jkate]

Aden was the same. I couldnt do it in his sleep however, for he was such a light sleeper. What saved me in the end was he didnt mind a friend cutting them and then eventually my DH. I wasnt allowed to cut them for a long time, did make me feel like a bad mother:( . Hope things work out soon, thier are lots of good suggestions here. :smiliedance:

[ButterflyKisses]

I use to do my DS's when he was asleep more for the fact I was scared that I'd snip his little fingers if he moved whilst awake. Now he doesn't mind me cutting them when he's awake so I'm very lucky there.

However, when my nephew was 3 he would chuck the biggest wobbly and all hell in the house would break out once they were cut. My brother cut them one day when we were all on holidays at my mother's and he literally screamed for an hour afterwards "I want my fingernails back, I want my fingernails back" and the only thing that would appease him was my SIL painting clear nail varnish on them and told him that they would help them to grow again. Well unfortunately that only satisfied him for about 10 mins and when he realised that his nails hadn't grown back again we all had to get our ear plugs out again. Then she tried some face cream and told him it was magic cream and that in about a week or 2 they would grow back again but he had to stop crying otherwise it wouldn't work.

He's now 5 and finally outgrew the tantrums.

[natasha]

I do DD's whilst she's is asleep. I sneak in and get one of her fingers and "snip' the i have to run run run outa the room b4 she wakes up and realises what im doin. then 5 mins later, i sneak back in and do 1 more, and then run out! and so on!!!:laughing: