If you have a little pre-school person living at your place, you’re probably familiar with some (and maybe all) of the following …
- defiance and wilfulness – often whilst eyeballing you and doing the exact thing they’ve been told not to
- selective hearing – ummm yes, well, very selective indeed
- mess, mess, mess and more messiness
- mood swings by the minute – from shrieking and foot stomping to declarations of “I love you” and kissy cuddles – all changeable in a heartbeat and we know that only one end of that spectrum is cute, isn’t it?
- a total lack of privacy for anything (especially when tending to your own personal needs)
- absolutely no ownership of anything – all possessions are, and forever more, owned and controlled by the smallest householder
…. and usually all of the those scenarios roll together to make a good day!
If it helps any, I can assure you that Baby Girl has satisfied each and every one of the above mentioned criteria (AND more) today …. and its barely past lunchtime!
One thing that I am absolutely certain of though is that this toddler stage WILL and DOES pass. Thank God! It can be hard and bloody demanding while you are living through it and some days the joy of motherhood plays a mighty mean game of hide and seek. Where the hell is the joy today???? Answer me that someone, please!
It’s the experience of parenting 2 teens before this little jumping bean, who I call Baby Girl, that gives me the confidence to know that it will actually be all A-ok.
Even on a shitty day, I just need to look at my 2 older children – they CAN wipe their own bums, they DON’T need my attention constantly, they RARELY whine, they do ACCEPT decisions and consequences and yesssssss they SLEEP through the night. Ahhhhhhhhh (yep, that’s my sigh!)
Until the days of independent bum-wiping and full nights of sleep, I have learnt to manage any of the frustrating bits of this stage through loads of laughter and music loud enough to drown out even the most furious of tantrums. A never-ending set of Play School DVDs helps a little too. Then of course, as soon as the gorgeousness sets in, the slate is cleaned …. again, and she’s back in cute credit.
I really believe that as Mums of little-uns, we need to be kind to ourselves, especially when the long days are also bloody hard ones. It IS actually more than ok to look after your own needs too and there’s not a thing wrong with taking a minute or so to yourself, as in the long run, everyone is usually much better off.
Find the humour, soak up the fun, roll with the punches and enjoy the whole experience. Time does go so quickly and really, this too shall pass.
