If you haven’t ad the experience of being bossed around by a 2-year-old, it’s definitely something you should put on your to-do list. I now understand why some people have so many children – it’s so they have plenty of other kids to play with the little ones so they can actually get other things done! Audrey has a constant need for attention, which is partly due to her age and partly a reaction to her baby sister, Anna. What this means is that a typical conversation sounds something like:
Audrey: I want to play a game.
(Mom starts to get the game.)
Audrey: NO! I want to paint.
Mom: I thought you just said you wanted to play this game.
Audrey: What you said?
Mom: I thought you just said you wanted to play this game.
Audrey: What you, said, Mom?
Mom: You heard what I said.
Audrey: I want to watch movie.
Mom: Which movie do you want to watch?
Audrey: I want to pick.
Mom: Ok, which movie do you want to watch?
On and one it goes…
Ugh! One of the solutions I’ve found is to have a loose schedule planned for the day (in pictures, so she can understand it) with various planned activities. This seems to work fairly well in combating the endless back and forth about what she wants to do, but sadly it takes time every night to plan for the next day and sometimes I’d just rather take a hot bath and go to sleep.
The other problem is that I don’t like being told what to do and sometimes my frustration reaches the point where I just want to have the last word – JUST ONCE! This usually ends in disaster. It’s hard being her only playmate because frankly I think I’ve forgotten the art of play just for play sake. It seems like I’m usually thinking about everything else I should be doing instead – I’m working on that! After all, iIt’s much more fun to think and act like a child rather than an adult, anyway!
When I do allow myself to get immersed in play, it’s usually a blast for all of us, but then I get frustrated because she’s ready to move on to the next thing! I’m sooooo hoping that she and Anna will eventually play well together to give just a little relief. I’m told that Audrey is just like me when I was little, so I guess I’m getting what I deserve!
