Why do they call them "terrible twos"? My little three year old behaves much worse than he ever did when he was two. He acts out and disobeys us SO much more than he used to. I know, it just a phase and "this too shall pass" (at least that is what everyone keeps telling me), but there are some days I don't even know how to deal with him and no punishment seems to suffice. I've heard about children "pushing your limits" to see what they can get away with, but sometimes the blatant disobedience and disrespect I receive from my child is ridiculous. My husband says it's a good thing that we have a "willful" child because it will benefit him in the long run when he enters the real world. Maybe if he was the one dealing with it 24/7 he would have a different outlook...then again, probably not because he's stubborn and wouldn't want to admit that I'm right. :-)
I just want to warn all of the mothers out there that still have toddlers, if you think 2 is bad, just wait until they're 3. They can talk back much better at this age and have a firmer grasp on how to push your buttons. I love my child more than anything in the world, but there are definitely days that I daydream more about life before him. I've never been categorized as a patient person and having a three year old definitely pushes my limits on patience, even more than I'd like to admit.
I know I'm not alone when it comes to having a difficult three year old, but some days it feels like an insurmountable battle and I'm the lone warrior. I have tried everything from timeout to TV restrictions to behavior charts and nothing seems to work. Luckily, he seems to behave relatively well for others, like his teachers, grandparents and babysitters. He just decides to be a "devil-child" with his parents. I guess if there's a silver-lining that would be it. He respects other adults, just not us (well that makes me sad). The only thing I can do is foster our relationship to the best of my ability, hold firm on my rules, and hope that it will get better with time. It will get better, right?
P.S. After reading through this it sounds like I have a horrible child and I don't. He's just extremely difficult at times. There are plenty of times that he is incredibly sweet...like when he looks at me sweetly and says, "I know I just love you" as he is hugging my arm. Or when he comes into our bed in the morning to snuggle before the day begins.
"Terrible twos or threes" aside, having a child is the biggest blessing I have been given and I look forward to watching him grow into the wonderful, caring man that I know he will be.
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