Not ready for 2

On Sunday, Sophia turned 19 months. It may not seem like a big deal, but she is now more than half way to 2 and I am totally not ready.

She has already started to test her boundaries. Last week, I took Sophia and Ryan to our friend’s house to meet her new baby and Sophia was as good as could be expected. Of course, we had a little behavioral breakdown right before we left because she wanted to stand up on the kitchen chairs and, silly me, I didn’t think that was a safe activity for my little girl. So, a little temper tantrum occurred, but it was mild and I didn’t even really think about it until my friend and I started talking about how Sophia was “strong willed and very independent.”

I kind of laughed when I said that Sophia is so strong-willed that most times my husband and I give in well before she gives up. In fact, we try to be very consistent in our discipline, but the truth is that Sophia rules the house. The worst is when I’m correcting her and she starts laughing. I can’t help but laugh. She is so cute that I have to turn my head and make sure she doesn’t see me smile. Somehow, I’m sure my, “Sophia, this is not funny,” isn’t getting through to her.

At the suggestion of my friend, I went online and found a ton of web sites devoted to disciplining the strong-willed child. I’d like to say I will read every one of them so that I can be completely educated on the subject, but the truth is that I don’t really have time to devote to this research, especially since I don’t believe Sophia is a problem.

I think it’s good for Sophia to be strong-willed and independent and to really know what she wants and what she doesn’t want. I like that in her and I think it’s a quality that will be very useful to her as an adult. I love the fact that she is speaking in full sentences at 19 months and I attribute that to her being determined to let us know exactly what she wants. Sometimes it’s a little tough for us to figure out what she wants and she gets frustrated, but she doesn’t freak out or yell at us or get angry, she throws a little tantrum and what 2-year-old doesn’t.

So I say to Sophia, we will continue to set boundaries for you and I’m sure you will continue to test them. It’s only the beginning.