Outsmarting the toddler

Toddlers are stubborn little things sometimes. My days usually consist of trying to stop tantrums in their tracks now. Which basically means tricking him into thinking he's helping or doing things his way.

Some of the ways I've outsmarted him this week include: 

He kept wanting Josh's chips at lunch. But I realized when I actually tried to give him one, not in the bag, he had no interest. So, clearly the allure was eating out of a bag. I took his sandwich that he wouldn't touch and tore it into pieces. I put it in the bag and gave it to him. He was then excited to eat his sandwich. 

His new thing when getting to the car has been to try to run off while I'm carrying Emma or trying to put her carseat in. I started telling him her carseat was soo heavy and asked him to help me carry it. He loves being a big brother so this worked perfectly. He now holds onto the carrier all the way to the car and waits at the door to make sure she's clicked in all the way. No more chasing him or yelling for him to stop. 

I rarely go to Starbucks, but when I do, Ethan always wants my drink. Pretty much anything we're drinking, he wants really. So, I started asking for a cup of water with ice from them and I tell him it's his special drink. He's happy to have a grown up drink and he doesn't get mad that I won't share my coffee. 

Anytime he starts to get fussy while shopping now, I ask him to help. He loves to feel like he's doing something to help out. I'll ask him to help me find things from the cart sometimes. Other times, I let him get out and get items off the shelf and put them in the cart. He loves that best since then he can also help push the cart. Sure, grocery shopping takes a little more time, but there's no tantrums so it's more enjoyable. 

He's gotten a bit more picky with eating. Some days he'll eat great, other days not so much. I've found he eats things that he helped pick out at the store better than things I just throw in without him seeing. I let him grab the apples and bananas and give him a choice between other items.

I also let him help make the food when I can. I'll set him up on the counter and have him sprinkle cheese in or I'll give him the measuring cup of spices to toss in. He loves eating veggies right as I'm cutting them up now. He'll stand there waiting to get some freshly diced peppers or tomatoes. 

Anyone else have tips for how to outsmart their toddler? I'm sure I'll need more ideas since this kid keeps me on my toes.