Threenagers

Perhaps you've already read the Huffington Post article "10 Signs You Are Living With A Threenager."

If you haven't, you should read it now.  I'll wait.

Still waiting.

Done yet?

Ok.  That's my life.  I adore my smart, fun, limit learning little girl.  She's funny, has a huge imagination, and is the best big sister I have ever seen.  Terrible Twos?  Not in this house!  Sure she tested limits, but I can count on my hands the number of times that days were "bad" or that I thought I was going to pull my hair out.

A week before she turned three, I'm pretty sure she turned thirteen and gave me a glimpse into my frightening, terrifying, alarming future.  Girl is stubborn!  "I don't want to!" and "Because that's what I wanted to do" have become the most used phrases in our house.

Well, technically the most used phrases are "Please don't grab brother by the neck" and "Sit down on the couch, please!"  But those are my most used phrases, so back to the previous statements...


As part of this whole Paleo lifestyle thing, in addition to healthy eating, I'm also trying to manage stress and sleep more.  Sleep is a huge component, and I'm falling way short.  I have two kids who think sleep is optional, at least for Mom.

So imagine my surprise when the stars magically aligned and both kids were asleep and ready for naps at the same time!

Nap time for Mama, too!  Sweet!

After both kids were blissfully snoring away, I laid down.  Exactly 23 minutes later, I hear my husband's voice calling from the kitchen, "Michelle, look at what your daughter did!"

An entire bag of flour, less a 1/3 cup that was used like six months ago, all over the hardwood floors in the kitchen.  Old school hardwood with actual gaps in between boards.  

"Why did you do that, Aubrey?"

"Because I wanted to!"

"Now Mommy has to clean that up.  Do you think that's fair?"

"I just wanted to draw!  Now you hurt my feelings!"  Cue dramatic run away, followed by tears.

I had to leave so she wouldn't see me laugh.  

#ToddlersAreAwesome

These are the little moments that make memories, right?  So much for that whole stress reduction thing, though.  I'm kind of giving up on that.

Hopefully they do sleep when they're teenagers though.  That's something to look forward to for sure.