Gearhead Mom

Wednesday, September 26, 2007

Toddler, Toddler, Toddler Two

Posted by Missy W. @ 9:00 AM

My friend Jeanne always spits out pearls of wisdom at me. One of my favorites is, “Toddlers are special people.” When you repeat the phrase, make sure it is laced with equal amounts sarcasm, caffeine withdrawal and love. Oh, and it helps if you smirk and roll your eyes at the same time. My goodness, my girl is two. No, let me rephrase that. My goodness, my girl is TWO! I don’t think I’ve ever been told “No, No, No!” this many times in my life as I have the last week. It’s impressive. As are the hour-long epic hissy fits. Rog and I have so far managed to keep our humor in check, but all the while not laughing in front of her; we don’t want to hurt her feelings. Although, come to think of it, I am pretty sure she doesn’t give a rat’s arse about our feelings currently.

Anyway, when she starts ratcheting it up about 20 notches, I start repeating my favorite mantra (other than “toddlers are special people”), which is “toddler, toddler, toddler, two.”
The sing-songy nature of the phrase helps me breathe a few times before I start trying to force open the door that has just been slammed in my face. The phrase comes from one of my favorite board books, “Toddler Two,” by Anastasia Suen.

“Toddler Two” has nothing to do with toddler-as-tyrant syndrome, but it’s awfully sweet and lulls us both into a happier place when I start reading it to my teenager, I mean two-year old. The book is set in the toddlers’ backyard and discusses what comes in sets of two (hands, arms, ears, etc.) and reminds the wee reader that “Two is the number just for you.” I also appreciate that the kids in the book are Asian, but it’s not a book about being Asian. The book also comes in Spanish. Winnie Cheon’s fabric “illustrations” are groovy and I see something new in them every time we read the book. Apparently the book also comes as a pop-up variety, although I’ve yet to see one.

Snapshot:
This is a sweet, vibrantly illustrated board book for the collection.
Also a nice idea for a two year old birthday present.

Share: Email   |     |