so this is why they call the 2's terrible

It's like a case study in action around our home these days. This morning Anna woke up very early, before the clock said 6am. I went into her room and told her that it was still nighttime and that I would come and get her when it was morning. Running on an average of 4-5 hrs. of sleep per night I am not prepared to begin my day with Anna before 7am. Every 10 mins from then until 7, she rang the alarm yelling "Mommy, where could you be? I'm up now!". Finally I went in to free her from her pink palace and was thrilled to see she was in a wonderful mood.

Anna then had a warm bubble bath, followed by 2 heaping bowls of Cheerios with blueberries and bananas, watched 25 mins of Mickey Mouse and then took me on a safari hunt through the house searching for wild animals with her flashlight and her camera. It was pleasant. It was not yet 9am.

Knowing our plans for the day were not to begin until 10am, I bundled Anna up and we took to the outdoors. After spending the bulk of the day outside yesterday sledding, shoveling, walking, playing and everything else you can do in the snow, I thought this would be a great idea.

I pulled out the shovel and began to attack the driveway, Anna next to me with her pint-sized shovel. And then...

the whining began. Oh, the whining!

The snow is too heavy. I can't push my shovel. My car won't drive in the snow. My boots don't work in my car. I need my sled. I don't want my sled. I want to go walking. I don't wanna walk. Cover me with snow. Get me out of the snow! My hands are cold. I don't wanna wear my mittens. Mommy, put my mitten on. I want to go in. No, I don't wanna go in.

The driveway was shoveled in record time as I hummed to myself trying to drown out the whining. As I finished up to a chorus of Anna's pleas to go inside, she pulled one of her mittens off. I told her that it was ok, we were going inside anyway. She then proceeded to stand on the driveway crying that her hand was freezing because her mitten was off and mommy won't you put my mitten on?

Meanwhile, I was standing in the house begging her to join me inside where her hands would be warm. This logic didn't make sense to her 2 year old mind.

Finally we made it in the house, and her snow clothes were removed. The crying began again. Still about the mitten. I calmly told Anna that she could cry on the stairs if she wanted to continue to whine and cry.

That wasn't happening.

That was when the screaming, crying, hand wringing and stomping began. This was indeed the biggest tantrum I had witnessed. And over a mitten??

So, I picked her up - legs kicking her unborn brother or sister, arms hitting my shoulders and put her in her room to calm down. 5 mins later she emerged happy and ready to play.

2 hours later we returned home from a fun and successful playdate with some friends at a local indoor park, Anna excited about the macaroni and cheese she was going to enjoy for lunch. 2 hours of happiness was apparently enough for her.

But I don't want mac & cheese anymore. I want a grilled cheese. Can I have a cookie? But I want a cookie. I don't like this mac & cheese.

Ahh, the mood swings. So happy one minute and the world is coming to an end the next. Knowing that this is a phase, and that this is all part of her brain working on the next stages of development certainly helps...but a glass of wine (but not whine) would be better. Maybe, just maybe, she'll get it all out before the baby arrives.