We're all happy until it's TURNING OFF TIME!

Am I the only parent who loves TV until it's time to turn it off?  My son, previously beaming, chatty, delightful to be with, turns into a howling monster - even after following all the recommended guidelines and common-sense rules - for-warning, making a pact at the start of the TV watching, reminding that the the TV will be turned off etc.  (See the ehow guide here for some basic principles).  It's as if I'm to be punished for the brief moment of serenity gained from him watching TV.  When will I remember that the pain aint worth the gain?!!!

I did a google search to find other people's experiences of this phenomena and didn't find that much, surprisingly.  "Celebrity mum" Coleen Nolan, writes in the Mirror about her daughter having a tantrum at the new house rules which state only one hour surfing the web per night.   And The National Literacy Trust provides an insightful and engaging diary of a mother dealing with her daughter's TV addiction.  Two and a half year old Ava regularly watches 5 hours of tv a day and screams when it is turned off.  The NLT give her some helpful hints on how to cure this and by the end of two weeks Ava's a reformed character.

I'm sure there are a lot more parents out there with real stories of their real children turning into monsters at the order to "turn it off".  How do you deal with it?  Send me your ideas...

(Image from http://kiwimagonline.com/kiwilog/short-parenting-articles/better-tv)