Life with a two year old.

*Don't read this if you don't want to hear about Daphne's boring potty schedule. You've been warned.

Two year olds not only have a TON to learn in this crazy age of life, but they also insist on doing it all on their own. Thus, the terrible twos. Some people say 3 and 4 is hard too and sometimes even harder. I can agree on some accounts (ahem... Makiah...), but really the fact that these two year olds are put through so much just makes it, well, terrible. Poor things. Poor moms. And dads. Goodness. Temper tantrums are a huge part of our lives around here (for all three girls (yes I said three, me too)). Daphne is, well, two. Makiah is, well, Makiah. And me? Every now and then I loose it too ;) But Daphne is the hardest to handle in the temper tantrum area right now. We are working through it, trying not to give in to stop the crying and trying to teach why things happen the way they do. Daphne is sweet and after a good cry she will share again and say sorry. We love her.

A few days after Daphne threw away her binkies she was still doing awesome with nap time. I let her nap in Makiah's bed to see if she would actually sleep without her crib. She did great! So we converted her crib to a toddler bed (yeay!). She still naps every day and has not come out of her room during a nap once. Whew! It's been so nice.

No binky, check. No crib, check. No diapers?

This is not what it looks like. I won't say I'm potty training... Because I'm not. This is all her idea so I'm just playing along. What else do you do when a kid refuses to wear a diaper?

This is how the first day went...

Daph woke up, insisted that she wears underwear. I had some shopping to do so I bought Dora underwear instead of diapers. We get home, she puts on a pair, sits on the potty a few times and then wets herself (expected, I'm totally ok with accidents. She needs to learn somehow). Then came nap time = diaper. She woke up with an attitude, didn't want underwear, wore a diaper the rest of the day.

Second day... Woke up, asked for underwear, peed I'm the potty(!), stayed dry all morning, wore a pull up because we had somewhere we had to go, sat on the potty while we were out, had an accident, wore a diaper at nap time, refused to take it off after. Again, she had an attitude when she woke up. No underwear.

This morning she went in the potty again!! But then we had to leave the house, so yeah. Diaper. well see how moody she is when she wakes up today...

I totally know I should take away the diapers completely, stay home for 2-3 days and not use pull ups during the day. But I'm not potty training so it doesn't matter :) hehehe.

When I trained Evan I started when he was two (when everyone potty trained, so I thought). I pushed him. I studied every method out there. I tried every trick. A year and a half later he was potty trained... but he still had a hard time, even through Kindergarten he struggled with a few things. With Makiah I didn't push. I waited and pretty much she begged me to potty train her. I kinda did what I am doing with Daph and she taught herself. Within a couple weeks she was good to go and never struggled.

I love what I learned from the two times I potty trained before. I learned to ignore the pressure from other moms (even if it comes unintentionally its there). I can potty train when and how I want. Mommy debates don't affect me anymore. I'm in no rush to have her potty trained by a certain age and I see no reason do try and do it in a day (or two or three). There are great methods out there, and I know a lot of people who swear by them... but they aren't for everyone (especially this over anxious mom). Daphne is interested, so as long as we're at home she can do what she wants. I'm sure at one point it will either click for her like it did for Makiah, or I can take a week off from life to get her trained quickly, if I have to. For now I'm ok, and she is having fun not potty training.

Therapy

It's was running joke between Dallas and I that volleyball is my "therapy" and without it I'm a mess. Over time it became less of a joke and more of a reality. I NEED volleyball. At least once a week... But really, every other day would be ideal. Recently I haven't had my weekly volleyball league which had been my relief and excitement that I got to look forward too. My therapy. It's winter and I really struggle with anxiety during these cold months. Luckily I've had church volleyball to look forward to, but I've been thinking lately of other things that have been my "therapy" during this long winter...

Friends. Being able to leave in the evenings with a couple friends and just hang out at Starbucks or McDonalds and chat. Or a girls night or movie night at a friends house. We all need the adult conversation and to be able to get out of the house. Soooo nice.

A good book. This winter I've read the Divergent series and the Cinder series. Loved them both! It's so nice to escape reality and get caught up in a good story.

Photography. I forget about my big girl camera all to often. But when I pull it out I'm so happy. Last week I did an in home family session and it was just what I needed to remember how much I love photography. Now I'm dreaming of starting a photography business again... This time specializing in lifestyle or rather, storytelling photography. Taking photos of real life as it happens. Now I'm determined to have my big girl camera out and ready to practice on my kiddos and to create art for my own walls.

Thank goodness for therapy.

Acceptance

I am not going to lie. Being a mom of three has been a hard adjustment. You know when you hear yourself thinking "Everything will be okay when things get back to normal..." And then you stop yourself and think "What is normal anyway? And when will things ever be normal?" Yeah. I think that everyday. So now I am trying to accept my life the way it is, instead of thinking the above, that everything will just get back to "normal" sooner or later.

So I am now learning to accept a few things, like....


My house will never be perfectly clean (I love having a clean house) and when it is "clean" it won't last long (unless 5 minutes is long).

Laundry will never be done. And I'll probably be doing a load at least once a day... from here on out. And folding laundry? forget about that one. That is what my bedroom floor is for, right?

Dinner, most likely, will not be on the table by the time Dallas walks in the door. And most nights leftovers, cereal or sandwiches is the way to go.

The translation for "meal time" is "sit and feed baby time" (I'll get around to eating... later) and "try to calm Makiah down time" (for some reason this has become her time to cry about everything).

Leaving the house, just going anywhere, takes time. And lots of it. Waking up early doesn't always do the trick (I find myself getting things ready the night before I have to go somewhere).

Shopping requires an extra hour of time, just in case... (potty breaks, time to feed the baby, calm a crying child... the list goes on).

I don't have quite as much time for personal hobbies (like photography :( And I can't even remember the book I last read).

My living room is now a playroom (well, it always has been. But now that baby is sleeping in the kids room, the living room is the playroom).

Date nights are now Netflix and ice cream nights (we are used to this one, though). Coupled with late night feedings for the baby.

Blogging and emailing will be done with a sleeping baby in my arms.

When I finally do find time to get something done, it will be interrupted.


I know that this won't last forever.  But for now, it's life. And do you know what? I like it (I keep reminding myself). Bring on the challenge. Being a mom is tough, but it's what I do and it makes me happy. I feel lucky to be a mom. Especially of these three amazing kids.