My sweet Katie Girl turned two at the end of January. Since then, I have thought to myself on countless occasions, how can somebody so little bring such frustration and such joy in a matter of minutes?!
She just had a meltdown at the bottom of the stairs because I wouldn’t carry her up (mind you she is VERY capable of going up the stairs “like a big girl” and does it multiple times a day). I had to stand there as she tugged on my pants, making them almost fall down, and try every trick and threat in the book to get her to go up. I did this while juggling her brother in one hand and her milk cup in the other. I found myself having to take deep breaths to keep my cool because something as simple as going up the stairs should NOT take 20 minutes, and certainly does not justify a meltdown! We finally get upstairs and go into her room to “rock a minute” as she says. I’m pretty sure we both equally love this (we snuggle on her rocking chair with a blanket and read books before her nap and bed times). She accidentally hit my chin, turns to me and says “Oh sorry mama, let me kiss it”. COME ON! How can you NOT melt at that?! This little thing was just about to send me to a nut house and now I’m kissing her and smelling her head because I just can’t get enough.
My mom witnessed an exchange between us before bed a couple weeks ago. Katie was trying to close all the doors upstairs (closing and opening doors is her new favorite thing) and when I asked her to please stop she looked at me, let out a loud sigh and stomped away. My mom turned her head so Katie couldn’t see her laughing, then she looked at me and said “Ohhh do I see you in her”. Let’s just say I wasn’t an angel toddler myself.
This age is so tough because she is starting to gain her independence and insist on doing everything her own way, in her own time. It can be SOOOO frustrating BUT at the same time it’s so fun to see her personality grow, and learn the little idiosyncrasies that make her, her. We have found that she LOVES helping us do things around the house. She helps Daddy get the trash together, washes the dishes (aka plays with the dishes in the sink and gets water everywhere, but I try to ignore that), helps put the laundry in the dryer, vacuums with her little toy Dyson, and most recently she put the coffee away for me (she put the k-cups in and out of the holder which occupied her for a good 20 minutes). Oh she is also REALLY good at organizing the tupperware drawer (insert eye roll face here). She is Mommy’s little helper when it comes to her baby brother. She is SO good with him and has been from the day we brought him home. The other day I was changing him when I realized I didn’t have his lotion. I looked at her and said “Katie could you get Jake’s lotion please?” She looked at me, said “sure”, walked into my room and came back with the exact thing I needed saying “Here you go mama”. There was also the time I needed a burp cloth desperately. As I was cradling spit up in my hand, I asked her to get me one and her reply was “Ahhhhh no. Sorry mama” as she walked away. I guess you can’t win ‘em all!
