Terrible Twosdays are back, and with a vengeance! I knew the day would come that the transition from two to three would reek havoc on our home in ways we never thought our little angel could. ‘Tis here, ladies and gentlemen, and I don’t think they’re going anywhere. The Terrible THREES have arrived a month or so early. Are we prepared??!!
Sassypants is in the house! Talking back, rolling eyes, attitude beyond recognition…our lovely, sweet, dainty little girl is now a sassy preschooler. Where do they learn to talk back to their parents? We certainly don’t talk to each other that way. And I can’t believe this little tot knows how to roll her eyes! She must have learned that from her father *rolls eyes*.
Lately, a simple “Ready for bed?” is cut of by “NOPE! I’m not tired yet!” and then an unwillingness to go to bed, a usually hitch-less transition. Mealtime is more like test time, where she’s pushing the buttons to see which ones work best. ”I don’t like opameal (t’s term for oatmeal) anymore!” Five minutes later, she’s spooning it down the hatch as if she’s never tasted anything so delicious. Most nights this is how things go: t: “I’m hungry! I’m thirsty!” me: “Dinner is ready.” t: “But I’m not hungry!!” Little Miss Contradictory. Ordering us around, “Walk in here *pointing* then stand here & pick this up!”. Oh, and breaking the rules!! Rules she knows well. Pretty sure this is her thought process: “When you said DON’T throw the ball in the house, what you really meant was DO throw the ball, right?”. Not to mention scolding her little brother as if she’s the Queen of Hearts: “I don’t THINK so, Marsden! You stop that right now or you’re going to be in big trouble!”. Well, at least I know where she gets that from…
Let me break it down for you. Our daughter, lil’ t, was a VERY easy kid. Easy newborn, easy infant, easy baby, easy toddler…WAIT…STOP RIGHT THERE! I have to change “easy preschooler” to “preschooler with attitude”. Overnight.
Ah but it’s not all bad. She is learning like a thick sponge, taking everything in. She learns with grace and simplicity. She is an amazing tiny person. The attitude that comes along with it is fine, as long as it’s respectful. Sometimes it’s laughable. The other day, she refused to hurry back to the car with us at a park right before it started sprinkling. I told her it was going to rain. Her response? “No it’s not.” I even pointed to the dark cloud looming over our heads. She didn’t believe me. Guess who got caught in the flash downpour, a sopping, sobbing mess? She sat on her bike & wailed as I ran back to get her in the car. One (small) lesson learned.
Testing, testing, testing. I suppose with learning communication comes language testing. She has to test the language along with her actions to see if it works. I’ll go with that for the time being! It will make our world a lot easier with that in mind 
To all you other Moms & Dads out there going through the same thing…breathe. The next thing you know, your 3 year-old will be 4 and we will be on to bigger & better feats.
Tags: breathe, challenges, child psychology, Children, kids, life, maternal instincts, preschooler, stay-at-home mom, Terrible Twosdays, toddler, two year old
