The "Terrible Two's" Stage is Real

Somehow, I thought that I had gotten away with this whole "terrible twos" stage parents speak of. My munchkin was generally so quiet and laid back I just couldn't see her turning up like that. Now don't get me wrong she had her moments when she'd show me just how much she could turn up, but they were very few instances compared to all the things I've heard and seen for myself with two year old's. But as she started getting closer to twenty-four months it was like things just switched. And then when she turned two it just happened overnight.

Now if you have no idea what I'm referring to when I say terrible twos lets go over this together. The attitude is number one. It's like my daughter is the wild wild diva of the west all of the sudden. She tells me no and she waves her little finger and will say things like "not nice." Then up next comes the tantrums. Yeah, they just go and go. The way her pediatrician explained it to me is she's used to me saying yes to everything so as she grows older and mommy has to start saying no to some things she doesn't understand and that causes a disruption in what she's used to so she reacts the only way she thinks will change things. Crying and falling out. And lastly her appetite is all over the place. She's all for trying new things don't get me wrong but she could like a food one day and the next time I try to give it to her she will barely touch it. It truly all depends on the mood she's in. Oh, and speaking of moods, her mood changes constantly. She could be having the best time ever then it’s like a switch flips and she's in a bad mood or she wants to whine like a baby. Then she attempts to add the fake loud cry which is hilarious and not hilarious at the same time. 

For me, it’s been tough as a mom. You want your child to be happy, but you want them to understand that they can't get everything they want. Like breakfast for example. My daughter has a snack every morning on her way to school. Sometimes its fruit, sometimes its cereal it just all depends. Now some mornings she wakes up and immediately wants a cookie. Now we all know that's not going to happen, but she wants it and she doesn't understand why she can have a cookie in the afternoon but not the morning. She doesn't know the difference. So, what does she do? She falls on the floor and starts crying. At 6:30am in the morning this is a lot for anyone. What do i do when this happens? First, I stop and breath. I don't want to scare her by yelling so I breathe to calm myself before I respond. Then I attempt to turn her attention to another snack option. If she doesn't want it then I try something else until she gives in. She usually eventually finds something else in her cabinet that she wants. 

Although times are tough while dealing with this toddler stage, we also have to be aware that during this time our children should be reaching quite a few milestones as well. Social and emotional, language/communication, cognitive, and physical movement milestones to be exact. I personally still have the apps from during my pregnancy and I use it to track her stages and developmental milestones. I believe the way we handle situations now affects them so tell me friends... How do/did your child handle the two-year-old stage and how do/did you deal with it? Also, did you track your child's development or no? Talk to me :)  

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