3 is worse than 2...

Ok, let me preface this blog by saying a few things:

1. Holly, I read your most recent blog and I'm sorry this is so long, but I think you'll find it amusing.

2. The following information is what I have found to be true in my own personal situation. If you have not reached this point in your parenting don't let it scare you, it may not be the same for you as it has been for me.

3. What am I referring to you ask? If you don't know me let me say that I am not referring to the number of children in your household because I have no idea what it is like to have 3 kids (one day I will hopefully). I am referring to the age of one particular little girl in my house.

4. Finally, a huge part of this problem comes from her genetic make-up. I mean, she comes by it honestly. You know what I mean if you know Phillip or me at all, so again, as mentioned in number 1 your child's personality could make this a totally different experience for you.

Ok, with all that said, 3 is so much worse than 2!!!! When Savannah Grace was 2 I thought, "If I can just make it through the 2's we'll be golden." Then when I took her to the doctor for a check-up he told me that it wasn't the Terrible Two's but it was the Terrible Three's!!! I thought, "You have got to be kidding me! I'm barely making it now and you're saying it's going to get worse? I'm going to blow my brains out!!" (fyi - that last statement about blowing my brains out was for dramatic effect, I don't have suicidal tendencies) So I prayed, "Lord please just get us through the 2's, it can't get worse than this." Yes it can! Now, like I said earlier, part of this has to do with her personality. SG (short for Savannah Grace) is independent, strong-willed and Irish, which can all be good things, however in this 3 year old whose is learning her boundaries, these qualities rear their ugly little heads. A friend of my husbands, Pastor Steven Furtick, put this beautifully in a blog about his little boy, Elijah. (http://www.stevenfurtick.com/?p=217) We are right there with you Steven and Holly!! So, in light of all this new found information about which age is worse than which, Phillip and I have adopted a new philosophy. We are stating that the Terrible Two's doesn't refer to the age, 2 years old, but in fact it refers to the two years between the ages of 1.5 and 3.5. With that said SG is now 3 years and 2 months old, I'm giving it 4 more months and if things don't improve drastically I might have a major meltdown and rejoin the working force!

So all you moms out there send in some comments. What has been true for you? Any advice or encouraging words? Any new discipline tactics that I might not know of? Am I the only one in this boat?