Here's Betsy of Fluffy Windover's Diary with this week's Toddler Thursday:

Babies and toddlers are challenging. There is always something you’re struggling with as a parent: sleep issues, eating issues, potty training, tantrums, misbehavior. The bright side is that they grow and develop so fast, right when you’re at your wit’s end with one challenge, it resolves and a new one takes its place.

The current challenge in our house is underwear. There is a lot of underwear drama going on these days. When Edwin was potty training, I bought him super-hero underwear, each pair sporting a different character. These were a huge hit and really helped him with the diaper transition. The problem now is he doesn’t understand that after you wear Incredible Hulk, he goes into the hamper and you can’t wear him again until Mommy does laundry. When Edwin wants Incredible Hulk Edwin, Captain America just won’t do. And forget about the Thomas underwear; that is so three months ago. (Here’s a suggestion for any parents going through potty training: consider buying plain underwear ONLY, so you don’t find your 2-year old digging through his dirty underwear to fish out Incredible Hulk.)

The other underwear challenge we have is that after Edwin goes to the potty at home, he just runs off without putting his underwear and pants back on. When he was potty training I allowed him to run around pantsless because it made the whole process easier. But now that he’s fully potty trained, there is no reason that I should be subjected to his nether regions while he’s climbing all over me and the furniture. So we have a new rule: he must put his underwear on after the potty, and he can’t play with any toys until he does.

You’d think this would be an easy sell, but no. His latest “underwear tantrum” lasted 30 minutes before he finally gave up and put on the pants. At daycare, of course, this is not an issue. He saves the underwear tantrums just for me. At first, I tried my usual tricks (making his stuffed animals help put them on). But that only worked a few times before he realized that I was the one behind it. Like most toddler behavior issues, it’s just a power struggle. He knows I want him to put on underwear, and therefore he will not do it willingly. And really, for once I’d like him to follow directions because he knows he’s supposed to, not because his teddy bear tells him to.

I don’t know how many more of these tantrums we’ll have to endure before the new rule sticks, but I’m about at my wit’s end, so the new challenge must be just around the corner! I wonder what it will be.