Toddler to Threenager!
Tomorrow is my daughter’s third birthday, and I am feeling incredibly emotional. Not sure if its a pregnancy hormone overload, the fact I am missing my Mum (its the 2nd anniversary of her death on Thursday), or whether this is a normal “my babies growing up” characteristic, but I am currently an emotional wreck of a football widow! When people say to you when pregnant “cherish every moment, it goes so quickly”, you tend to nod and smile – without fully appreciating just how bloody fast it really does go!! It honestly seems to have passed us by in a bit of a blur. That said, I am so so proud of what my daughter has learned and achieved in the last 12 months! 🙂 Here are some of my favourite, toddler to threenager milestones Erin has experienced in the last year! 🙂
Conversation
In the last 12 months, my daughter has become quite the chatterbox. Gone are the half formed sentences, and hello are the full blown conversations, the questions, the insights on life, and the stories of what she has done during her day. These conversations are absolutely precious, and without a doubt the highlight of my day. I love nothing more than putting her to bed and hearing her talk about what she has done, and what she is thinking about. The other night she told me she was excited about her baby sister, and that she was going to teach her to sleep like a big girl and put her hand up when she coughs. Adorable. I’m hoping she keeps her promise on the first bit, as long as she shows her how sleeps now, and not how she was awake for most of the first two years of her life! 🙂
Potty Training
One that I was quite nervous about was potty training. We started when Erin was nearly 2 and a half, and she actually mastered it pretty quickly. Yes, we had a few wees on the carpet, yes, we had a few little accidents, but overall, I am bloody proud of how quickly Erin decided she was a big girl and that she should use the potty, that “babies wear nappies and I’m a big girl now!”. What really helped us was the reward chart (a home made one with cheap stickers, nothing fancy!) and lots of positive reinforcement. After she’d mastered it, she soon told Daddy to “put the potty in the loft” as she wanted to use the big toilet. 🙂 Life is LOT easier without nappies!
Getting Dressed
You may see a theme here, but Erin has definitely become more independent. *sob*. Not only now does she have an opinion on what she wants to wear (try convincing a nearly 3 year old that they can’t wear a party dress to nursery), but she wants to get dressed herself. This has mixed results!!
Imagination
One of my favourite things about Erin is how nicely she plays with her toys. She has always loved Happyland since she was one, and now has moved on to Disney princess figures and Playmobil. She makes up little stories and acts them out, doing the voices of both characters. Her imagination is amazing, and I often sit and just watch her play. Such a peaceful and innocent time! 🙂
The Energy
The energy knows no bounds. This has both positives and negatives. Positive because I LOVE how full of life she is, although at times its bloody exhausting! She is also QUICK, and running after a toddler in my waddle like pregnant state has proved somewhat challenging! 🙂
Reading
Obviously not on her own, although she does try, Erin LOVES books, and this is something I hope NEVER changes. We read every night before bed, and I am often greeted with “read it again, last time!” before I give in and reading it once more before she goes off to sleep. She knows some of her books off by heart, and even the more complex ones she will join in on the odd word. She loves to count and say what she can see on the pages, and her bookshelf is getting more and more full of her favourites.
Diva’ness
You didn’t think we’d survived the year without some kind of diva like behaviour did you? Unfortunately not. So many times I have to swallow my smiles or turn around to laugh for fear of letting her see just how goddam funny she is, like the time she told Daddy his “tummy is getting too fat now, you’re like Daddy pig” to asking me “are you serious!?” when I told her to come inside, followed by a “whatever” when I explain why. The three going on thirteen behaviours are starting already!
Sleep
Has improved considerably over the last 12 months. We now get a full nights sleep most nights (hurrah!) – just in time for when baby no.2 comes along and a sleep ninja returns! She’s now in a “big girl bed” and the transition went relatively well – not the hourly visits that I envisaged! 🙂 We do occasionally get nightmares now however, with the most common reason being a “monster in her room” – the imagination obviously runs into dreams as well! She has the “don’t leave me Mummy” face down to a tee, and I am inherently weak, so have spent a fair few occasions on her bedroom floor! To be honest though, I don’t care, she’s only little once, and sleeping there is FAR better than not sleeping at all. Take me back 12 months ago and trust me I would’ve slept on the floor every night to have had just a few hours kip!!!
The next 12 months is going to be an interesting time. With her baby sister due in September, Erin’s life is going to change considerably. We are talking to her regularly about the baby arriving and how she can “help” Mummy. I am doing my best to keep her involved. At the moment I can’t imagine ever loving anything as much as I love her, and am sure I will feel overwhelmed with guilt when I have to share myself with another person. I am so desperate to ensure she doesn’t feel left out. A shorter labour without staying over for three nights would be nice this time too!
Wish us luck!
Lucy x
