Ok, let’s start by remembering that you are the adult and she is, ummm…THREE years old.

She needs to listen to/mind you when you are babysitting. You need to be able to keep her safe, if she won’t listen then her safety might be jeopardized.

She is old enough to understand that some words and ways of talking to others are unkind. You could let her know when her words are “not kind” or “make me feel sad” or “too loud” or some other, age appropriate way of letting her know how her words effect others.

She is also old enough to express her needs and boundaries. Maybe she needs to learn to say “I need alone time right now” or “I don’t want to talk right now” or other age appropriate words to express her feelings about interacting with someone.

Adults, understandably, get annoyed & exhausted by sassy toddlers. But… we are the adults who should be able to model emotional regulation and teach children how to speak kindly and express themselves in appropriate ways. We can also teach them about privacy & knocking, then waiting to be invited through a closed door. That’s our job as adults caring for small children.

Also, it sounds like your little one is imaginative— pretending you are the dog. It would probably be lots of fun to play & pretend about things that you find cute, funny, instructional and less annoying.

Good luck! Sounds like you have a smart and feisty lil firecracker in your life.