Whoever coined the phrase "terrible twos" probably had a child like mine at two. I imagine when Charlotte gets to be two, unless I can somehow figure out the key to keeping her happy, one is probably going to seem like a cake walk. However, I've decided that one comes with its own set of challenges.
I took Charlotte to her 12-month pediatrician appointment yesterday. Her doctor said she was plenty healthy and was really happy with her recent growth spurt. Her development is months ahead as are her teeth. She's getting in her molars. Molars paired with two booster vaccines seems to have created a monster. We spent the entire evening with Jekyll and Hyde. One minute we had a very sweet fun-loving little girl that wants to play with toys or read books, the next we have a meltdown of fake crying and pouting.
One of my major issues right now is food. We've pretty much completely weened mostly just because I think we've both had enough breastfeeding. So now she gets cows milk and a host of solids. I wanted to be one of those moms who does lots of research and carefully introduces foods into her diet. I wanted to make her baby food and freeze it. I wanted her to eat only organic produce and dairy. But I live in the real world. In this real world my baby is obsessed with berries, bananas, and crackers - so much so that she will not eat anything else.
I expected there to be a round of picky eating, but I didn't expect it to be this early. I spent the better part of an hour trying to force feed my baby avocados after she had seen strawberries that she would have happily eaten instead. She used to scarf down avocados! I was so proud! What happened?!
Another advanced skill that my dear child has started learning is "no". You yell at her "no" she yells right back with the same intensity and inflection. She thinks this is quite funny actually. When I take something away from her that she's grabbed, she gives me a defiant looks and grabs at it even harder.
Dr. Sears books talk about babies and how they need their mommies. He talks about how babies don't have the capacity to manipulate, they just want what they need. My baby isn't a baby anymore. This baby manipulates. This baby is willful and stubborn. This baby is just like her mother! The fussy baby book gave me so much hope and direction with my "high-needs child". But now that I have a high-personality toddler I feel like I need a new instruction manual.
We've tried time-outs for things like playing in the dogs water dish and hitting. The problem is that she waits until you get up and walk toward her after you've warned her to start running away. She doesn't stop with the warning. I know she knows she's in trouble, the problem is that she doesn't care!
I have to admit having a toddler with so much energy does have it's pros. Charlotte never goes unnoticed and she's always happy to flirt and entertain. It's fun watching her play with bigger kids at the playground and I like that I can be pretty rough with her and not hurt her. She's a tough little thing and she melts my heart at the same time. It's just those times when she's shaking my entire laptop desk to get a rise out of me because I wouldn't give her strawberries that I have to wonder if the terrible twos perhaps arrived a year early.
No comments:
Post a Comment