One of the hardest parts of parenting is developing our own will to not waffle back and forth on “following through” in discipline. We really can learn to follow through calmly on what we said we would do when a child does something that is not part of the rules in our family.
To do this, I think one has to have in mind what the rules of the house or family actually are, and also the developmental expectations for that age. Think to yourself: can this child of this age meet the rules of the house or family, and in what way? What is my part in this as the parent, and what is my child’s part? The younger the child is, the more it is up to you to help the child.
The Parenting Passageway 