The terrible two’s are a misnomer. “Terrible two’s” makes most think that the tantrums that toddlers are famous for start when they turn 2, but Michael has demonstrated clearly and without equivocation that throwing tantrums are not solely the domain of 2 year olds. Mikey’s tantrums are partly to blame for my extreme exhaustion tonight. Add to that the fact that I’ve been dealing with a cold (congestion, coughing, occasional chills and feverish spells) for the past five days and, of course, the fact that I’m 27 weeks pregnant — makes for a very short-tempered mommy.

I like to think I’m generally very patient with Michael. Some of his trying habits include:

• throwing his toys outside his playyard. Its gotten to a point that I don’t return them to him right away, but keep them on the kitchen counter until I have time to clean them (which, this time, took more than a week), then return them little by little to his playyard. By the end of the day, most of his small, easily thrown toys are scattered about the floor.
• dropping bits and pieces of food from his high chair tray when he’s about done eating. I swear, we just cleaned our house, including the downstairs floor, but it now looks as if we haven’t cleaned it all year.
• tearing paper. Mikey’s been sniffling and sneezing, too, although not as severely as I have been (my doctor keeps reminding me that my immune system is suppressed during pregnancy), so every time I spot his runny nose, I go at him with a tissue….but he does not like this. So he goes after the tissue, tearing bits and pieces off it where he can as I try to mop up his upper lip.
• lately, he’s been protesting his home changing table vigorously, by arching his back, immediately flipping over, whatever he can do so he can either stand up or sit down, rather than lie still so I can, I don’t know, change his diaper. I’ve asked his daycare lady if he does this there; he doesn’t. Only at home. I’ve no idea why.

When you add Michael’s trying habits, his refusal to nap for more than an hour today plus my exhaustion and sickness, that equals an ill-tempered me. And I’m sorry to say that I didn’t necessarily react the best way to some of Mikey’s behaviors. In fact, after unsuccessfully trying to put him down for a second nap (which he sometimes does), I just put him in his crib so I could shower and put on fresh clothes (did I mention that since I’ve been sick the past few days, the clean and dirty laundry have piled up?) and tend to myself for an hour, while he fussed and cried in his crib. Honestly, if I hadn’t done that, I probably would have been much worse.

But thank God that a child’s memory is short, and seeing as how he hadn’t had much of a nap, he went to sleep early, easily and quickly — making me feel a little guilty for how badly I reacted.

Sigh. God bless a sleeping child.