that last one was from me (sorry i forgot to log in) ... persistence is probably the key then. if he starts again, if it were me, i'd probably just send him back to time out for another two minutes. and another, and another. or try to change the subject! if he is throwing a fit because he can't play with something, remove it from his sight and replace it with something that is ok for him to play with. after you let him out of time out, before he can start acting up again, try taking him to the park.

i would ask a different question.. why can't he do what he wants to do? is it a safety hazard? or is it just that he is trying to get your attention and you're trying to do something that involves you not paying attention to him? i *do* have trouble when i am trying to concentrate on something and he wants to get my attention over and over again - time out isn't a solution there because he's not really doing anything wrong, he just needs to "give me a break" for a couple minutes. if that's the case, you're just gonna have to give him what he wants - attention. i've discovered that there's a very good reason parents say that when they get time to themselves all they want to do is sleep.. it's because there's absolutely no such thing as time to yourself any more! it doesn't exist.