I can only laugh that I am writing about being a Mommy of a threenager when my daughter just turned two and half! I must say I am going to have my work cut out for me over the next 18 months. Three proved to be a tough age for my son who is now almost 5, so I had a feeling it would be a whole new world once my daughter turned 3.
A threenager is that age when your 3 year old or almost 3 year old, as in my case, acts like a 13 year old. They have attitudes like you wouldn’t believe, they want to be independent, they want what they want… no questions asked and can be savvy, suspecting, and sweet all at the same time. This age has me scared to see what it will really be like when she is 13. I will need lots of prayers, wine and vodka.
I collaborated with two of my my good friends who have daughters around the same age as mine. The three girls are BFF’s so we had a fun group text going on brainstorming the list. We did not make any of these up or embellish them in any way. We really have heard these phrases and witnessed these signs of having a threenager in our homes.
20 ways you know you are living with a Threenager :
1. They can be so polite and sweet and then in a blink of an eye they become whiny and/or ornery. I mean, what just happened is all I can think to myself sometimes.
2. They use, “I don’t…” phrases and “NO” A LOT!
3. They have 3 or more wardrobe changes in a day. Seriously, pick a Princess already!
4. They run away from you as soon as you tell them it is time to do something… like pick up their toys, get dressed, eat lunch/dinner. They always told us to keep our running shoes on once they started walking.
5. To nap or not to nap. This could seriously make or break your day. And you have to make sure it’s not too long or too late or you will never get to bed at a decent time at night.
6. You have to leave ten minutes early so they can buckle their selves into their car seats. Can we go, already????
7. She tells you she is “busy” or “just a minute.” I just have to laugh because I wonder where she heard that from! Mom is BUSTED!
8. She tells you to leave her alone. Already? I can’t wait until she is 13! NOT!
9. She can’t leave the house without her purse/wallet/make-up/baby doll. And it never fails she can’t find any of them when you are in a hurry.
10. She doesn’t want you to help her get dressed and throws herself on the floor in a tantrum if you do.
11. She “talks” on her play phone to her Mimi and friends and walks out the backdoor like she doesn’t want you to listen to her conversation.
12. You witness foot stomping and hands on the hips more than you’d like.
13. They borrow your things- jewelry, phone, shoes, make-up and purses and you don’t get them back!
14. They tell you, “I can’t pick up my toys, because it would make me too tired. ” or “I don’t know how to pick up my toys.”
15. They tell you, “I NEED my hair like Elsa” or “I NEED two braids like Anna.”
16. You’ve heard the phrase, “I can’t explain it to you… it’s too complicated.” Wow, those are big words for a three year old!
17. They can give you the stink eye.
18. They tell you they are going to the gym, HEB, shopping. Notice they are not asking to go they are telling you they are going there. Who’s the boss here, now?
19. They tell you, “I am ONLY playing with Maya and/or Gracen.” They rotate their BFF’s hourly, daily, weekly.
20. When they go potty they tell you, “Give me privacy, Mom!”
Some days can be hard and exhausting living with a threenager because you never know what you are going to get and others are smooth sailing and leave you feeling like you’ve got this whole motherhood thing down. Some of the best moments of mothering a threenager come when you least expect it. My favorites are when she comes and gives me a hug and a kiss and she tells me she loves me or she tells me I am her best friend after she has told me to leave her alone all day long. It makes it all worth it!
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