Breaking News: Parenting a 3 Year Old is Not for the Faint of Heart

Friends, we are currently in the very thick of raising a 3 year old. Even though little sis just turned 3 earlier this month, it feels like she has been at her current age for months.

Can we just state the obvious right off the bat and say that parenting a 3 year old is not for the faint of heart? She is the second one to be at this age in our care after little brother went through a similar, albeit different, experience last year (older brother was 4 when we got them). The thing is, she is the love of our life, truly, and our family wouldn’t be complete without her. But she is miss independent to the fullest right now and it’s coming through in the form of yelling (screaming?) “NO!” every time she doesn’t want to do something. Or sometimes she’s blankly say, with no enthusiasm or feeling whatsoever, “no…”. It’s so matter of factly that I often can’t help but start to laugh because it’s so damn cute.

Honestly, looking back on it while writing this, it’s comical because she’s 3 and nobody can tell her anything right now (so don’t even try). She is so hilarious and so cute and so smart and she learns something new and says something new almost every day, and it brings us the most incredible joy raising her during this time in her life. I am excited to look back on these hard months and laugh in the next few years (with her next to us, of course) at how difficult it all seemed at the time. Because doesn’t it always seem worse in the moment than it really was?

I posted on Instagram tonight about how much I love doing life and parenting with PJ and how, though it isn’t perfect, there are some nights where it feels pretty damn close to is. That’s kind of where I’m at right now: today was hard with sis, very hard actually, but tucking her in and laying down with her as she ooo’d and aaaah’d and pointed at her nightlight that casts dancing colored stars around her room, I thought (as I think pretty much every night) how did we get so lucky? Out of all of the people these kiddos could have been placed with, how were we the ones who get to say good night to them night after night?

It’s so easy to get frustrated in the moment when they’re being naughty or acting out, but the friggin truth is we would be lost without them. Because we would be. So even though she’s been the pickiest eater lately and refuses almost everything we put down in front of her, and doesn’t always come when we ask her to, and throws whatever is in her hand (and I really mean whatever) when she gets angry, sis is the absolute definition of love, light, and beauty. She is our world, and even though her brothers probably wouldn’t admit it, I know she’s theirs, too.

I wish everyone could have the chance to know and love her like we do, but you’re just going to have to take my word for it on how great she is. Parenting a 3 year old is not for the faint of heart, but it is absolutely the best decision we ever made.