Raising toddlers often requires equal parts patience and equal parts sheer willpower.

When one young woman was left in charge of her rambunctious cousin who was still learning the meaning of the word “no,” lunch got served with a side of discipline.

Read on for the full story.

AITA for ignoring my little brother’s demands?

I (25F) live with my aunt and uncle and their two kids (15F, 3M).

My aunt is in the middle of changing jobs and has been helping her boss-to-be clean up her workplace in preparation for the summer kids, and my 15-year-old sister is helping her boyfriend at a wrestling show.

So she found herself in charge of the toddler.

So, I was in charge of the 3-year-old for today.

He was hungry and so was I, so I made hotdogs for myself and prepared cheese, oranges, and an Uncrustable for the kid.

When we eat at the table, we all wait until everyone is served to eat.

I had my brother drag the highchair to the table (it’s light and he can easily push it) while I made the food.

I got him situated and gave him his water while he waited because we want him to work on his abysmal patience level.

This abysmal patience level quickly heated up.

While I was cutting up his sandwich, he started banging on the table yelling, “Mine!” “Now!” and “Eat!”

I told him no and that he would wait until his lunch was ready.

He kept yelling, so I ignored him and brought our plates out once they were ready.

He has a silicone plate that we suction cup to the table when we all eat together.

She continues to ignore him, trying to curb the behavior.

Several times while I was trying to eat my own food, he tried to pick his plate up from the table and play with it.

I had to stop what I was doing to put it back down, which made him yell, “No, mine!” every single time.

When we finished, he was huffing and puffing because gods forbid he couldn’t have his way.

Now she wonders if she went too far.

He’s not spoiled by any means, but he is very impatient and is in occupational therapy for his listening skills, hand-eye coordination, and motor skills.

His therapist is helping him learn he has to wait sometimes, which is taking some time, obviously.

AITA for ignoring a demanding toddler and essentially forcing him to wait for his meal?

The Uncrustable may have thawed, but her resolve never did.

What did Reddit have to say?

It may be tough to handle right now, but eventually as the child grows up, things will get easier.

By this commenter’s standards, everyone is just doing the best they can.

Challenging a kid can even be a positive thing for their development.

This whole conflict is ultimately one big life lesson for the child.

In the end, he was just doing what toddlers do best and she was doing her best to guide him.

Looks like it was a lesson in patience for both of them.

If you liked this post, you might want to read this story about a teacher who taught the school’s administration a lesson after they made a sick kid take a final exam.