good for you babe! That is a huge achievement and one which you should feel really good about.

I tend to think that yelling is an effective means of getting their attention simply because it's a loud noise. If I need to get DS's attention immediately to get him to stop doing something, I clap my hands really loudly a couple of times - works just as well at stopping them in their tracks.

Wherever possible I try to talk to DS. So I squat down to his level and hold his hands and explain things. But of course, as a toddler that doesn't always work, he'll sometimes try to pull away or just continue what he's doing. At these times I pick him up and talk to him while we walk away from the situation. Generally speaking we try not to just say 'no'. I always give an explanation of why we don't do something and if possible encourage him to help rectify the situation. eg. 'we don't throw food on the floor because we get flies and ants. Come and help me clean it up'. Of course, it isn't all that effective the first time, or even the second time, but with repetition they get it. DS no longer throws food on the floor, in fact if he drops something now he wants to clean it up straight-away so we don't get flies and ants.

I think it's important to remember that they're just like us. If someone tells me 'no', it doesn't stop me from wanting to do it (if I'm honest I probably want to do it more just to rebel). But if someone explains to me why we can't do something I'm usually happy to oblige or at least discuss the reasons - toddlers are much the same I think.

HTH