Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums General Discussion Idiosyncratic Behaviors

I'm interested in hearing idiosyncratic behaviors your DC's might do -- maybe so I don't feel so weird about the behaviors DD3 has!!

For instance, DD3 refuses to sleep in her bed. We had to move her to a bed from the crib kind of early since we were expecting another baby soon. She slept in her bed for a week, then started getting up in the middle of the night to sleep on the floor. For a year now, she has slept on her floor. We've tried all sorts of tactics to get her to want to sleep there, yet we never push the issue because it's just not all that important to us at this time (she sleeps well on the floor and we figure people do it in other parts of the world all the time!). Maybe she gets it from DH -- he used to sleep in dresser drawers and behind the couch shoved up against a wall when he was a child!

Anybody else have children who do odd things like this?? C'mon, I know you're out there!

My DD2 spent about 8 months napping on the floor for no reason. She slept fine in the bed for bedtime, but nap time she refused. I didn't fight her, either. I figured that sleeping on the floor was still sleep, lol. Now she only sleeps (day or nigh) with her bedside lamp on, the nightlight isn't enough light. I'm willing to pay for the extra electricity because otherwise she gets into bed with me!

DS4 wears his shoes on the wrong feet and his clothes inside out. He knows the right way, but he won't do it. I do insist that tennis shoes be put on the correct feet, but sandals and crocks I won't fight him on.

DS7 talks to himself. Constantly. He walks around mumbling things to himself and if you ask them about it, he looks at you like you're crazy. I think he doesn't realize we can hear him and thinks we're reading his mind, lol.

We've had floor-sleepers, too. Both boys have gone through this. Since I often sleep on the couch (better for my bad neck to sleep upright), I have a hard time being critical...

ah, I had to laugh here - please define "odd"

That's a good point, Barbara -- I guess "odd" is a pretty general term, especially in regards to the GT species.

Our DD3 is a couch sleeper - nearly every morning, we'll find her curled up with her blankets and stuffed elephant on the couch (which she has migrated to at some point in the night). I keep asking her why she does this, and she can only respond with, "Because I like it!" Occasionally, she'll vary the routine by sleeping in the middle of the living room floor with her blankets surrounding her in what she terms her "nest." She's had a thing about eggs lately.... :-)

My GT little sister used to sleep curled up in cardboard boxes. She looked like a pretzel, but she was very comfy.

Odd is indeed relative...

I don't know if you meant this type of stuff too but..My DD5 had some very odd behaviors to sounds and also things. Starting at about 1 year she would run and scream in fear around the house when the trash trucks came on Thrusdays, at first I didn't get what was going on and I would say things like stop having a cow (big mistake) it's just a trash truck. Then everytime she saw a cow on tv she would scream and run around like the cow was going to eat her. Thank goodness she grew out of this, she still is a bit of a nervous nelly, but not to the same extreme.

These stories crack me up. DD3 used to run and scream anytime she heard a truck go by our road when we were playing in the driveway. She had convinced her grandma that she was truly scared of them, but we knew she was just doing it to get attention.

Until 4 days ago, DD had to have a baby gate in her doorway next to her while she slept on the floor. We finally just let it rest there one night instead of latching it and she threw a fit. In the morning when I got her, I said, "Look, you slept with the gate off all night!!" She was quite proud of herself and decided to give the baby gate to her baby sister. We haven't had to use the gate since.

And like I mentioned before, DH used to sleep curled up behind the couch crammed up against a wall. Or he'd take the clothes out of the dresser drawer, curl up in the drawer, close it up and go to sleep.

He also watched TV while standing on his head.