the terrible two's

Oh...it's so hard being a two year old. You just never get your way and people just don't understand what you want. The only word you ever hear is "no". You have to eat vegetables instead of filling up on Nilla Wafers. It's just tough.

Now for the mom's perspective...ahhhh!!! Yeah, that about explains it. :)

Charlie has come into his own of being a typical two year old. Fits. Tantrums. Refusing to eat. Not doing what you tell him to do. The list goes on. He's really a great kid...he is just having a hard time dealing with not getting absolutely EVERYTHING he wants when he wants it. He is very set in his ways so if something is not done to his liking, it just makes him really upset. Here are some examples: when you enter a room, don't turn on the light because Charlie must do it; He, and only he, can push the button to close/open the garage door; he, and only he, can determine which cup he drinks out of; he must watch football on the tv if it is on (we've almost got this one broken though); you must name each of the characters on his diaper BEFORE putting it on him; you must name each of the characters on his diaper and then on his toothbrush before brushing his teeth; you must sing "Farmer in the Dell" while brushing and then sing the "bible" song while flossing. There are many more but you get the idea. I don't know if this is being two or if that is just Charlie. Probably a little bit of both. He's always kinda been this way but here recently, he has learned that he can demand that HE do it. He does this by pointing to himself. Every once in a while, he'll want baba or daddy to turn on a light but those are rare.

Charlie has learned that he can protest. He can say "no" and not do it. Mommy's a pretty tough cookie though and he usually has to do it anyway. It just depends on what it is. Eating vegetables has become a battle. That's for any kid though. Any suggestions? I'm learning that if that is the only thing on his plate...he'll eat them! He can put up a pretty tough fight about it though. Here's the cycle: he won't eat vegetables so he doesn't get any more of other things like chicken so we get done with dinner and he's still hungry; a few minutes later, he's telling me he wants something to eat...nilla wafers, crackers, etc. is normally what he wants; I have to choose at this point - snack or go to bed hungry; if I choose the latter, like a good mom should, he will scream for an hour after going to bed until you feed him something. What's a mom to do? I don't want him to fill up on carbs and starches but he won't eat other stuff. Most of the time, I try and get him to eat applesauce or yogurt at this point.

I found myself using this phrase just last night..."If you touch those again, I'm going to spank you!" Need I say more about this? He does atleast mind most of the time, which I am thankful for.

Um, let's move on...positive things. I have to think positive!

Charlie is obsessed with school buses right now. He looks for them constantly while we are in the car. Luckily, on our way to his school, we see plenty! If we mention going to the church building, he immediately says "scoo-buh? bye, scoo-buh." We pass a high school on the way to the building and there usually school buses parked in the lot beside the school. Daniel told me the other day that on his way last week to his class at the building that when he passed that parking lot, he expected to hear a little voice in the back go "scoo-buh!" He said he actually said it out loud just to make up for Charlie not being in the car.

Charlie is becoming much more independent. I'm sure this is due to his time at MMO. He's playing much more with other kids. His vocabulary is improving every day as well.

On to other things...I'm sure you have noticed a lack of posts. Yes, I've been lazy but I've recently been working on planning our church's Fall Festival so now I'm swamped. I'll do my best to keep up but this month is going to be crazy busy. I'm also working on Charlie's Halloween costume. I took on the hassle of making his costume. It's proving to be a real challenge since I haven't sewed something this complicated in...oh, I can't remember when. Hopefully, it will turn out really cute! And, no. I'm not telling you what it is. You'll just have to wait and see!