This is such a goofy picture, but to me it embodies my vivacious, silly, loving two (and a half!!!) year old, Emma...I believe she's saying "cheese" with squinty eyes and yes, a mouth full of cheese pizza. That's my girl.
I don't even know where to start about the two's but I've had ideas for this post swirling around in my head for the last few months and instead of doing something about it...I haven't blogged at all. So this will probably be random. There are so many things I truly love about this stage.
But man, this stage is HARD. When she doesn't get what she wants...
It is so hard to be consistent in parenting. And so hard not to bribe here into doing what I need her to do. And so hard to keep my cool when she is throwing a full-on temper tantrum because I didn't put her milk in the blue cup...mind you, she doesn't even have a blue sippy cup!! :|
It. Is. Hard.
Some struggles...
-She wants to do everything herself. In Matt's words...Emma's teaching How to Make Things Take 10 Minutes Longer Than They Need To 101 if anyone's interested. Getting in her car seat. Putting on her clothes. You name it. Oh the joys.
-She never really wants to wear anything she owns in the morning. So getting her dressed has been a fun battle most days. I've tried the whole giving her two options thing. We'll get there.
-She THROWS herself down on the ground when she doesn't get what she wants. Full on tantrums.
-And sharing...not a strong suit at this age. So sometimes playdates can be fun.
But in this moment, when I'm not up to my ears in whining, I can honestly say the two's have been pretty much terrific. We'll get through them. I'll make tons of mistakes. But I'm confident they will not mar my daughter for life. So if you're in this stage too...hang in there! And (preaching to the choir) enjoy the small things. They go by way too fast. And seriously, there is nothing terrible about this face! If it doesn't melt your heart, I'm not sure what will:
-I am constantly blown away by the depth of thought and contemplation going on inside that big Dutch melon of hers. The other day as she was dragging a chair over to the counter so that she could reach some gum, she turned to me and said "Don't tell me no mama. I'll be mad. Don't tell me no, OK?!" HA! And while this exemplifies her stuborn nature to a tee, there are few things that bring me greater joy than watching my child learn.
-Lately she tells us a lot of stories. Love her imagination. They all start with - "Onceupah-atime" (it's all one word) and it's adorable. Most of them involve a crocodile or a lion coming to the park!
-She loves snuggling again, after somewhat of a brief hiatus. The other day we walked around the antique mall and almost the whole time I held her (hello small glass items everywhere) while she laid her head on my shoulder. This hasn't happened in a LONG time.
-Oh and she says "I love you" and gives random hugs and kisses all the time. My absolute favorite time of day is coming home from work and she comes running into my arms...... Or maybe tucking her in at night and saying "Sweet dreams, my love" to which she always replies "Sweet dreams, my mama"
-Em is all girl. She's sensitive, dramatic, and loves all things princess. When I play the Tangled songs on iTunes, she holds up her hands and says, "stop mama, I need to go get my punzel dress!" So we dance and twirl around the house singing Disney songs. It's the best.
But man, this stage is HARD. When she doesn't get what she wants...
It is so hard to be consistent in parenting. And so hard not to bribe here into doing what I need her to do. And so hard to keep my cool when she is throwing a full-on temper tantrum because I didn't put her milk in the blue cup...mind you, she doesn't even have a blue sippy cup!! :|
It. Is. Hard.
Some struggles...
-She wants to do everything herself. In Matt's words...Emma's teaching How to Make Things Take 10 Minutes Longer Than They Need To 101 if anyone's interested. Getting in her car seat. Putting on her clothes. You name it. Oh the joys.
-She never really wants to wear anything she owns in the morning. So getting her dressed has been a fun battle most days. I've tried the whole giving her two options thing. We'll get there.
-She THROWS herself down on the ground when she doesn't get what she wants. Full on tantrums.
-And sharing...not a strong suit at this age. So sometimes playdates can be fun.
But in this moment, when I'm not up to my ears in whining, I can honestly say the two's have been pretty much terrific. We'll get through them. I'll make tons of mistakes. But I'm confident they will not mar my daughter for life. So if you're in this stage too...hang in there! And (preaching to the choir) enjoy the small things. They go by way too fast. And seriously, there is nothing terrible about this face! If it doesn't melt your heart, I'm not sure what will:
1 comment:
I love this Robyn. Thanks for sharing it. You are exactly right that these times will not mar her for life. I wondered if Maryann would ever get past some of those hard things about being 2 and 3, and sure enough, she did! So yes, remember to enjoy it and keep dancing to the punzel songs! That's the stuff that she will remember! (and yes, I am also preaching to the choir). Miss you and praying for you. I love that last pic of her. Such a cutie pie!
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