Parenting Skills

Monday: Shopping and Temper Tantrums

Monday

Dave woke up to the sound of crying. At first he was very confused. He wasn't sure why he was hearing crying when they were on tour. Then he remembered that two of his bandmates were now three year olds. He sighed and climbed out of bed and headed over to the other bed where he'd put Chester to sleep. The boy was awake now and crying louder than he'd ever heard. He yawned and then picked the sniffling boy off the bed and started to rock him gently.

"It's ok. Ssshhhh, ssssshhhh," he whispered as Chester cried. Why did Chester have to be such an emotional boy? Why did he have to cry so much?

"Bear!" Chester said through his tears.

"We're going to get you one today ok? You just go back to sleep for a couple hours and then we'll get you that bear."

"Now!"

"We don't have one now," Dave said softly.

"I want it now! I want it now!" Chester yelled as he started punching Dave repeatedly in the shoulder. He'd stopped crying. "NOW!"

"Chester, we don't have a bear right now. I can't give you one."

"I want a bear!" Chester screamed. This got Rob to wake up. Of course, Rob wasn't a great person to wake up at four in the morning.

"Can't you shut that brat up?" Rob asked angrily. Dave stared at him in shock as Chester started crying again.

"Rob!" Dave said but he was cut off by Chester's crying. He sighed as he bounced the boy in his arms. Chester looked......disgusting. "Ew god."

He hurried over to the box of Kleenex on the table and got one to wipe the little boy's nose. He wondered how Joe and Brad were doing.

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"Brad he's still up," Joe whispered, "He's just staring at me from the bed. Make it stop. It's creeping me out."

"Just shut your eyes. He'll go to sleep eventually."

"But I can't sleep if he's watching me like that!" Joe said. Brad sighed and sat up. He saw Mike sitting up in the other bed staring at them. Joe was right, it was kind of creepy. He sighed.

"What's wrong Mikey boy?"

"I can't sleep."

"Close your eyes and think about something good," Brad said. Mike shook his head.

"I wanna see Chesser!"

"He's sleeping," Brad said hoping that would make the boy change his mind.

"No! He's crying. I hear him!"

"He's sleeping. Trust me Mike," Brad said before laying down, "Now go to sleep."

Mike didn't go to sleep. Instead he sat in his bed screaming until Joe couldn't stand it anymore. He punched Brad in the back.

"We're taking him into Dave's room. He won't shut up unless we prove that Chester's sleeping."

Brad sighed and lifted Mike out of the bed. Mike stopped screaming and pointed at the door.

"Go!"

They walked across the hall to Dave's room and quietly opened the door so they didn't wake them up. Instead, Dave was sitting on the couch leaning forward so he didn't fall asleep while gently rocking a sniffling Chester in his arms.

"Chesser!" Mike shouted and he started kicking Brad in the stomach so he'd let him down. Mike ran to Chester and put his hand on Chester's stomach and his other hand on Chester's head. The boy immediately stopped sniffling and he looked up at Mike with his dark eyes. Dave looked at the two of them in shock. Chester's eyes slowly drifted shut and he fell asleep.