Tuesday, January 12, 2010

A Word of Warning

I love age 2, because you can excuse your toddler's most egregious behavior with a shrug and the phrase, "Terrible twos . . ." Most people will understand and overlook all manner of tantrums, mess, and screaming when the perpetrator is 2 years old.

But what happens when twins turn 3? How do I get people to forgive my daughters' naughtiness now?

One girl loves to shriek, "You STINKY!" at any and every person she meets.

The other sheds big crocodile tears and sobs, "You MEAN . . . " whenever she doesn't get her way.

Both girls think it's hilarious to shout, "Poopy butt!!" in public, and when I glare at them with the ol' stink eye, they lower their gaze and state demurely, "We say poopy BOTTOM, Mommy. Poopy BOTTOM."

We are eagerly anticipating a visit from my mother. She should be arriving in a couple of weeks, which gives me plenty of time to prepare the guest room, but not nearly enough time to break my daughters' offensive habits.


Sorry, Mom.




Dinner last night: baked chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy, green salad



Exactly one year ago today:



13 comments:

Karen M. Peterson said...

Oh that whole Terrible Twos thing is a myth. It's more like Terrible Two-Eighteens.

Katherine said...

Absolutely laughing right now.

My completely terrible two year old turned three last summer. And we're still trying to blame his behavior on his age. He does the exact same thing...shouting "Stinky!" at the top of his lungs. He also will lay giggling on the floor saying "Underwear" over and over. We're hoping to postpone the in-laws from visiting until everything isn't "Stinky."

Michele said...

Oh, what little stinkers they are! That picture is worth a million bucks@

Unknown said...

Adorable picture! I thought age three was much worse than age two with both my boys. I dreaded taking them out in public - I just never knew what they'd do or say.

Amy DM said...

Chances are your mom has seen this stage before and won't be too surprised.

I had four children (ages 3 and below) at one time and learned to let their behavior at home be pretty childish and playful. But when we went out in public they knew there was a way to behave. I was very strict on them and they behaved accordingly.

Because of this we could go out to eat with no problems, I could take all four by myself to the grocery store and never had to worry about temper tantrums or wild behavior.

At home they were very 'normal' and got into all sorts of trouble.

Hope this helps in some way.

Mother Mayhem said...

BWAHAHA. Sorry. Couldn't help myself.

Anonymous said...

I agree with Karen - the terrible-twos thing is a myth. Children just find new ways of being both challenging and totally adorable as they get older! :o)

Morgan said...

Haha, I've wondered the same thing.
Maybe it's a girl thing? It seemed like my boys were so well behaved when they were 2 and 3. My girls, on the other hand, wow they're a lot of work!

Helene said...

I so get where you're coming from. Everything out of Garrett and Landon's mouths right now are "Poo poo butt head" and "no way".

And you know the worst thing about twins is that they egg each other on...they sit there and laugh hysterically at one another which just keeps them going and going.

Love the picture though...you should blow that up into poster-size and put it on your front door. And I'm serious!

Joey Lynn Resciniti said...

I got the worst behavior out of Julia when she was just freshly four. I think the phrase "terrible 2" just sounds good and our kids all reserve the right to be cranky at any age.

I read a lot of blogs and yours is far from "crappy".

glitzen said...

Ha ha! Yes, my Chena Danae had the most awful threes EVER. I thought it would be pretty easy to give her to a friend, she was soo cute and looked so innocent but WATCH OUT. Don't cross her! OH my yes..the threes. Good luck. :)

Dianna@KennedyAdventures said...

Oh.My.Goodness! How much do I ADORE this picture! I want to eat these girls UP! Hope you are feeling better. Brett has back issues, and Flexeril is an old friend in our house. Advice for you -- skelaxin is another muscle relaxant, that won't knock you out so much..

twinmamabee said...

If you ever figure this one out, please let me know. Mine are going to be 3 on the 18th this month and bipolar disorder has set in. I never know what mood they are going to be in!