Notes from the Mother of a 2 Year Old!

“I remember sitting as a new mom on the playground, and watching other mothers struggle with their 3 and 4 year olds (throwing out cliche statements like “Because I said so!” and “I’m going to count to three!” on a far too frequent basis). I stared down at my complacent, innocent baby (likely “coo-ing” with picture perfect timing) and thought: ‘I will never have a child like that. I will raise my daughter to listen, be well behaved, and we’ll live our lives like one giant, happy Gilmore Girls montage with sardonic quips and freakishly attractive hair.’
Cut to four years later, and I can herald time outs, negotiate bites of vegetables and throw a screaming child over my shoulder and hightail it out of Wal-Mart as fast as you can say “temper tantrum.”


This is a quote taken from my dear friend Bailey’s getting to be ever-so-famous website makeovermomma.com. I had to use it, because no one has EVER put my exact thoughts into such a concise, cute paragraph that says so much about raising a young child.

I am now the mother of a 2 year old! And I can’t stop thinking about the way things
were, and they way things are. How about I do a little comparison:

I used to judge and watch screaming children in restaurants and say to Adam “OUR children will never be like that because we will teach them to sit and eat a decent meal.”
I now find myself apologizing to young couples, out for a nice, quiet date who had to sit beside us while Ella loudly sang, talked, wiggled, ran around and eventually screamed to the point of having to be taken outside for a ’time out’

I used to have time to play video games with my husband and brother (ok, did I really need time to do that?), take classes, and spend the evening watching the Food Network, finding new and exciting recipes to try.
I now find myself running home after a day of work to put in a load of laundry, change a little one into gymnastics clothes or wash her face before going to her children’s choir at church, attend whatever the activity of the evening is, run home and eat whatever dinner can be scrounged up (minus any fun fancy recipes), put her in the bath and snuggle with her before putting her to bed - then after she’s down clean up the house and work more on the laundry.

I used to roll my eyes when parents of older children would stop me at the store when I was holding or nursing my typically screaming newborn and say ’enjoy it now because time goes by so fast’.
I now find myself doing the exact same thing when I see parents with newborns!

I used to never understand the unconditional love that parents had for their children (whether or not they screamed through the entire meal, or all the way through Wal-Mart). I never knew the deep emotion that follows when your child looks up at you, touches your face and says ’you are beautiful momma’ or runs into your arms and says ’I’m so glad to see you Mom!’

NOW I understand fully!!! I know what it’s like to see the changes in my daughter and be so proud I could pop when she says she loves me!!
I love everything about my daughter unconditionally (not that it’s easy to withstand the new attitude and independence when she looks directly at me and says “NO!”)
I love everything about our lifestyle and having a 2 year old - because when I look back I know I wouldn’t have had it any other way!!

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!!