Normally I try not to write about anything that I wouldn't want to see in our local paper. However, I have an issue here that I have to discuss - if only to get my thoughts out of my head.
Claire has turned two.
Oh, I know she turned two back in March, but she has officially reached the "terrible twos." We can pinpoint the moment it happened (on Saturday evening at Uncle Brandon's). Ever since, it's been like invasion of the body snatchers here at the PB house. I feel like that Folgers Crystals guy is going to jump out at any moment and say, "We have secretly replaced the normally sunny, easy-going Claire with a very noisy ball of tiny, impotent rage - let's see if anyone notices!"
She can't just ask for things - she has to whine. Or scream. Or whiningly scream. Or screamingly whine. My formerly easy, compliant child has suddenly become a holy terror. I do not know what to do with her.
We went out for dinner with BJ's dad and step-mom last night. Of course Claire took the opportunity to be a raging brat. We thought she was just tired, but she started in with it again the moment she got out of bed this morning.
Mary Grace never did this to me. She's always maintained a baseline level of fussiness, but she didn't do this everything-sucks-and-no-one-is-doing-what-I-want-so-they-shall-be-made-miserable thing. Or maybe she did, but at the time Claire was only 6 or 9 months old, so I was too busy and too tired to notice? I don't know...
But I notice it now, and I don't know what to do with her. She's obviously frustrated. She's miserable. I'm miserable. I want to put her in a box and send her to Grammaland.
I know, it's just a phase. We'll get through it. I need to bring my A-parenting game and weather it with her, but it just drives me nuts that everything has to be so damn difficult! Things were just starting to get easy.
This morning at MOPS I held a 4 month old baby so her mom could do the craft, and she (the baby) was so quiet. All I had to do was hold her and pat her back, and shift her position when she got bunched up, and she was so happy. It made me realize that while I don't miss most of the first-year stuff - the spit up and the sleeplessness and the worry and the endless wardrobe changes, I do miss being able to make everything ok again simply by holding my girls and patting their backs. I miss the simplicity of it - babies cry because they're wet, hungry, or tired. They don't care what's on TV or whose turn it is to go first or whether or not they got the same thing as the other one.
I won't miss this phase when it's over, and I hope it's over really soon.
7 comments:
if it's just since sat., maybe she is getting sick? does she have all those molars?
Oh, Amy. I'm sorry to hear that. Abby changed on June 13th, the day after her birthday. She has since just been cyclical about it. Hope she eases up on you soon...
Well I'm officially scared of the terrible two's!!!
I feel your pain. I just finished my own post about my two and a half year old's terrible twos. It is so brutal.
ZEN ZEN ZEN
Mary Grace did go through a similar phase for a while there when she was two though I'm glad to see that it did not scar you permanently (or if it did, it at least took the memories with it).
Sounds just like Cassie, who shares Claire's birthday and who hit this phase at around March 30. When she's like this, I repeat (aloud) "She's two. All children are hideous at two." Over and over.
I actually put her in her bed yesterday morning because she was driving me INSANE. It worked! But must be used judiciously. Then again, she really likes her bed. Maybe I can leave her there...
Oh, and not a week goes by that I don't look at one of my children and think "Hmm... how much to UPS you to Grandma in Chicago?" I even have a box big enough... ;)
Kelsey was really really good at two...and I am positive I did not just forget. Morgan on the other hand....I now understand the terrible two's. Kelsey hit a bit of trouble at three and very bossy four. But the screaming and crying has got to go. :) mandy
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