Terribly Terrific Twos

It seems that from the moment you announce your pregnancy you are bombarded with cautionary tales about the most dreaded stage of childhood: The Terrible Twos.  Now isn't the point of a cautionary tale to forewarn you so can avoid the catastrophe? Here's the catch - there is NO escaping the Terrible Twos. If your child reaches the landmark age of two, you will basically be living with a bipolar, irrational, emotionally unstable (sounds like Lindsay Lohan) little tyrant until..._____??  Can other parents fill in the blank? Please say it ends soon. Feel free to lie.

LO becomes possessed with The Terrible Twos sporadically. She can have one wonderful episode-free day followed by the exact opposite.  I have long ago accepted that LO will misbehave...and often. That she will test every limit and push every boundary. It's in her precocious nature. But these Terrible Twos look very different from her usual mischief.

She's weepy. She's overly sensitive. She grins and immediately frowns. It's like living with Sybil...which LO am I going to get?? My fun-loving, goofy girl or LO the Lunatic? I know it sounds harsh but it really IS harsh. It's hard to witness. Especially if you're new to the game as I am.

I hug her tight and reassure her that she will someday cope better with all these emotions. Sometimes she accepts the hug and other times she stomps away in a fury.  It's difficult to accept that I can't "fix" it. When LO was a restless newborn, P and I bounced her on a huge exercise ball for hours on end to soothe her. When she was crawling and her knees would get scraped up, I discovered baby leg warmers. When she began interacting with other kids and a toy was yanked from her, I would distract her with another toy. I cannot distract her from this. It's an insult to her intelligence. It is very real and she's needs to go through it. I'm just on the sidelines with open arms. Alas, I try to remind myself that I've never heard the term "Terrible Threes."

At her two-year check up, her pediatrician asked about her general health and development. Thankfully, all is great on that front. When I mentioned her new emotional state and the accompanying "symptoms," he chuckled and shrugged. "That's all perfectly normal," he said. He went on to explain that the toddler and adolescent stages are the most emotionally tumultuous times in one's life. Then I remembered my high school days and suddenly sympathized with LO. That is a rough time.  Poor thing.

I'll be here now and when she's an awkward pre-teen with braces (she'll definitely be awkward and need braces if she's at all like me).  To hug her or to get the door slammed in my face. Either way, I'll be right there.

Still rocking the leg warmers.