Pumpkin, sugar, peanut, dumplin’ – I’ve even heard parents refer to their babies as “woobie.”   Many parents have special nicknames they assign their children. My oldest daughter has grown out of her baby nickname, which was “Siddy.”  Her real name is Sydney.  We have a nickname for my youngest daughter, but it isn’t as cutesy as the names I’ve listed above.  It’s “Destructor”.   Yup, and believe you me she lives up to the name!

My sweet little Destructor is two-years-old.  I never liked the label “terrible twos.”  I know it is a hard age (believe me, I do), but  I don’t like to think that any age or stage, for that matter, is terrible.   Other synonyms for the word terrible are: frightful, appalling, dire, horrifying, horrendous and horrid.  I mean c’mon! A little strong don’t ya think?

The twos are terrific, even in the worst  and trying times the whole year-long.  Through all the chaos that the twos bring, they are the memories and moments that are happening here and now in my life.  I know from having a five-year-old, too, that I will survive, and it does go by in the blink of an eye.

Two years ago, I was so thrilled to add another little personality to our family.   I was also quite curious as to which ways she’d be different from her older sister.  The girls are alike in many ways, yet they are also very different.  Emery (aka – Destructor) is spirited and determined.  Oh yes, and quite daring! She’s done things that my oldest daughter never attempted.  Emery just seems to manage to get into everything and well, yes, destroy it, too.

Her milestones are happening quickly now.  She’s been out of her high chair for about three months.  We are still adjusting to her new freedom of getting up from the table and not being strapped in.  She uses a bumper seat, which put her into the “big girl” category; it comes with the challenge of her wanting up from her seat immediately when she finishes her meal.

Two weeks ago we conquered giving up her pacifier.  I was amazed and delighted that she made that transition very easy.  She used to be a “two-pacifiers-in-her-crib-at-night” type of chick, so going cold turkey and not skipping a beat was a very welcomed surprise!

Yesterday afternoon for her nap my husband put up her transition bed next to her crib.  She gasped when she saw it.  She laid right down in it and said “my new bed”.  Now… she didn’t nap at all yesterday.  Too busy dumping out all of her clothes everywhere all over her room.  Destructor!

I told my husband after her nap that there is no way I can pick up after her like this each day and not lose my sanity.  He agreed.  As I always joke, “happy wife equals a happy life.”  He installed the locks on her drawers lickety split!  She tried her best to break into them but to no avail.  I am happy to report she slept through the night with zero disruptions!

I took the girls to a fiesta this afternoon. When we were away my husband broke down the crib and put it in the basement.  When the girls and I got back from the party I took my little destructor upstairs to her room for her nap time.  It was a stop in your tracks type of moment.  Her crib was gone.  Another milestone reached.  I’m OK.  She was ready to move on.  She was ready to be out of her crib.

Like I said, the milestones are happening quickly.  Life is happening, and I am embracing it, destruction and all!

This is an original World Moms Blog post by Courtney Cappallo in Massachusetts, USA.  Courtney can be found homeschooling her two daughters on her site, Table of Four.

Photo credit to Courtney Cappallo.

Courtney Cappallo (USA)

Courtney Cappallo is a mom of two girls, ages 7 and 4-years-old. She is living her dream life by residing on Cape Cod and being able to stay at home with her two little beauties. Courtney is currently homeschooling both of her daughters for 2nd grade and preschool, respectively.

Courtney uses a mix of Classical Education and Montessori. She is a strong believer in teaching to the five senses. Courtney’s homeschooling efforts are unique, as she uses the latest technology of the Smartboard. She is also taking on the task of learning Spanish as a second language, as well as, teaching her two children and husband Spanish.

Prior to becoming a homeschooling teacher, Courtney was the Director of Marketing for Simon Property Group, which is the largest U.S. real estate company. Courtney was Simon’s Director of Marketing for the Burlington Mall, Arsenal Mall and Cape Cod Mall. Courtney is a graduate of Villanova University and is proud of her small town roots from growing up in Oxford, Pennsylvania, which only has two traffic lights! She can be found making homeschooling lessons and more at Table of Four !

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