The Twos Are (Not?) Terrible

I had a really sappy post drafted up about how two-year-olds get a bad rap. This is my third time parenting through the Twos, and I get a lot of pleasure from two-year-olds. The post was sweet and loving and was going to be filled with pictures of my little guy. He has a goofy sense of humor, he loves to help (especially if he gets to vacuum), he gets excited about the tiny wonders of life (like the ants that keep crawling under the back door), and he's just the right size to scoop up and tickle-kiss.

It's a wondrous journey of self-discovery

BUT

Then I had to haul him out of various establishments like a bouncer and it reminded me why two-year-olds can be rotten stinkers. Just about every day last week he did a public impression of a screaming octopus, wailing and screeching and kicking and thrashing. And through it all I had to paste a calm look on my face. "I've got this totally under control. I don't mind that he's kicking me. I'm not resenting my toddler for humiliating me in public, because that would be silly."

Go ahead. Punish me.

And then there were the incredible things I had to clean up because of him. I feel like his entourage sometimes, following after him and trying to fix things he's messed up, apologizing to bystanders, replacing things he's broken.

WHY SO SERIOUS??

But even at the worst moments there are bits of joy showing through, I just have to remember to recognize them. Aww, he's so cute with that nail polish he thought was lip gloss.