The Duality of a Toddler

(So to anyone who received a Survival Guide post in their notifications, that was the original post for today. However, something went wrong when I posted it and only half of the post was visible. Not sure what happened, but half of the chapter was just gone into cyber space. So I decided to post this instead while I try to mend the missing half of the survival guide post. Sorry for the confusion)

Today’s post was inspired over the thirty minute world ending meltdown that my daughter had yesterday…because she couldn’t pull her pants up after going potty. Keep in mind I helped her do it after the initial struggle and screaming, but she still lay on the ground and just screamed like a banshee who just stepped their astral foot onto the world’s edgiest lego. After attempts to get her to breathe it through and to calmly talk about how there was nothing to be upset over, I finally gave up and just decided that this was one of those fires that needed to be burnt out. Didn’t think it would go on beyond her brother finishing his lunch, me cleaning up the dishes, and putting him down for a nap, but hey, kudos to her for seeing things through to the end!

Anyways, I found it funny because just minutes before this episode, she was the happiest little girl ever! We were coming home from story time at ye ol’ Barnes and Noble where she had a bit of a tantrum there over something totally unrelated, but she had calmed down from that. She was instead talking about how excited she was to go to swim lessons that day with mommy and how she wanted to help her Mimi (short for grammie) make caramel apples. Everything seemed good! Well then we got home and I told her to go potty and wash up before lunch…the rest is poetry.

I know this seems a bit extreme and over the top, but you come to just accept this as parents. Toddlers change their moods at the drop of a hat over ANY conceivable reason. Heck, they don’t even need a reason half the time! Sun came up? Gonna scream! Sandwiches aren’t cut into isosceles triangles? That’s a screaming! Nothing, literally nothing at all happens? Oh, better believe that’s a screaming!

When it comes to my daughter (and suppose now my son since he’s starting to get into the toddler realm now that I think of it), moods usually fall into two categories. Either my little girl is like

Or…

That’s it

There’s no in-between.

Fun fact: I have now depicted my daughter as Darth Vader and now the Emperor. She is officially the master and e apprentice according to my psyche. I salute her powers!

She’s either happy or ready to give Black Canary a run for her money. Call it their lizard brain or just plain craziness, but anything and every is a potential meltdown.

At any rate, let me know what y’all do to survive the tantrums in your home. Likes and comments are always appreciated, as is the time you all took to read this. So, until next time, stay classy, stay safe, and, above all else,

Stay grumpy.