Red Truck Farm on the hill: distraction

How do you parent a 2 and 3 year old? I'm going to write a book about it. It will be a bestseller because it works everytime (almost). You distract. Period. It's the only way to attempt to avoid the next altercation. It's unbelievable how loud my home is, how many fights there are, and how many toddler tears are shed during the day. Truly unbelievable. What is it with my house? I've been told several times by those who have experienced this that it is solely because of their ages. 2 and 3, 15 months apart. There is nothing like it. Extract the middle child from the scenario (which I would never want...just hypothetical) and you have a baby that is content and a 3 year that will sit for hours organizing cards or coloring. Quiet. Dreamy. Extract the 3 year old from the scenario (which I would never want either) and you have a content baby and a 2 year old that will build with Legos all day, practice his circle drawing, or read books for hours. Quiet. Dreamy. Put all characters together and you have Lego towers demolished, crayons thrown across the kitchen, screaming, and crying. I am now experiencing what all warned me of that had the same thing. "The first few years are hell" were the exact words of our pediatrician. "Then it gets better and they are best friends." Best friends? Right. Gracie is currently filing to change her last name just so it's different than William's.

I remember the woman (a customer) in Paper Source when I was 6 months pregnant with William and carrying 12 month old Gracie on my hip. I opened the door, she stopped the conversation she was having, picked her jaw up off of the floor, and exclaimed, "how far apart will they be?". She then proceeded to counsel me on the "hell" I had just set myself up for...she was just coming out of it. I had a 6 month old that was sleeping through the night, laughing at my jokes, and had recently flown 6 hours and was given the "you can fly on my flight anytime award" by those sitting next to us. Having another one was going to be a breeze. Right? We had this parenting thing down. I've been offered special websites for mothers of kids so close in age, offered support groups to prepare, and have been given books. Forward to now, I'm living the exact life everyone said it would be. I see the 2 year age span between siblings and it is amazing the difference a few months can make.

I'm getting distracted. See? I'm good at this.

Distraction: painting. At "Paint it Up" with our little artist. Her first time. She sat at a table with a 45 year old woman and her 10 year old daughter. You would have thought Gracie was 10. Polite, methodical, quiet. This girl gets focused on something and there is no stopping her. She wasn't buying the idea that her bowl would be there in 5-7 days. "Mom, why do they set it on fire?"