The Liam and Maddie Show

Liam had soccer practice last night. Johnny says he's looking better and better each time he plays. On the way home, he wanted to stop and get a "treat" because the first night he had practice, Johnny stopped and got him a Gatorade, so he thinks he should have a treat every time. Johnny didn't want to stop and his practice ends pretty late, so they just came home. Johnny told Liam that if he really wanted a treat, he could have a popcicle at home.

When they came in the house and Liam discovered that there weren't any popcicles, he had a major meltdown in the middle of the kitchen. Once I translated "I-I-I wanedtoged a-a-a treatbudaddywouldntget a-a-a treatantherrrsssnopopcicles..."sniff...sniff.... I tried to be helpful. I explained why Daddy was in a hurry to get home. I explained why he didn't need to have a treat right before bed every week after soccer. It didn't work.

He was being unreasonable and I was ready to put him in bed- he was obviously overtired. Maddie, always the peacemaker and doer of good, remembers the half of a broken popcicle left in the freezer. She offers it to him kindly and he growls at her. She goes to get it for him and sweetly says, "Here, Liam. You can have this treat." He scowls at her and sticks his tongue out. I look at him, amazed that he would do that to her when she was trying so hard to help. I get angry and send him to his room for disrespecting her and generally being an unresonable pain.

Maddie starts yelling at me. "Why did you send him to his room? Why won't you let him have the popcicle?"

Kat: "Maddie, I'm not going to let him be rude when you were trying to help."
Maddie: "But, Mom! Can't you give him another chance?"
Kat: "Mad, I already gave him two chances. He doesn't want the popcicle, anyway."
Maddie: "Can't you give him three chances? Because there's three of us kids?"
Kat: "Maddie, if he wants to say he's sorry and eat the popcicle, he can."

She storms upstairs and I go up a few minutes later to see if Liam's in the tub. He's arguing with John about the bathtub, his treat and anything else that ever pissed him off in the history of his existence. I go into Maddie's room and I am surprise to find her sitting on the bed, crying.

Kat: "Maddie, what's wrong?"
Maddie: "I just wanted to help Liam and he didn't want the popcicle and (sob, sob) I really wanted to make him happy and (sob, sob) you wouldn't let him have a treat and now he's yelling because he doesn't want to take a bath."
Kat: "Maddie. Liam is very tired. Sometimes people just want to be mad about anything and nothing you can do will make them happy. We can not please Liam right now. But it's very sweet that you tried."
Maddie cries softly. It's tough being an empath.