To Spank Or Not To Spank...that is the question

I've been tagged by Malaysian Mommy on a very important and yet controversial issue : Do I smack my child?

I do discipline my 2 year old boy occasionally with a smack. Especially when he's done something really bad that he knows he's not supposed to. But I never hit him in the face, head, chest, etc. It's always only on the butt, hand or thigh. And I never hit him hard. It's just to show him that what he did was not acceptable. And I never discipline out of anger because then I will know it will be hard to control how hard I hit him. And it's always THE LAST RESORT.

My little one is not one to reason at this tender age of 2...the Terrible Twos as most people put it. You can talk till the cows come home. He'll just laugh at you and think you're being silly. I've tried "time out" and it doesn't really work for him at this age. Other forms of punishment like taking away his toys, no TV time, etc bears little meaning to him at this point. My first option is always to re-direct and re-focus him on something else. That works most of the time. But sometimes he is stubborn and refuses to listen. That's when he gets the more severe punishment. And he knows to stop right away when that happens. He's young but not stupid. He has learnt quick. Most days now, I just have to give him "the look" that says "if you don't stop what you are doing right away, you're going to get a smack".

All kids need discipline...one way or another. And I think as a parent, you know what works best for your child. And the last thing I want to see happen is for my child to grow up to be a spoilt brat who is self-absorbed and thinks the world revolves around him. Not unlike a lot of kids I see here whose parents are completely lax.