She's a big girl now :)

Oh how I joyfully adore my 2yr old. She is something else...she is just as stubbornly sweet as her momma can be that is for sure. Yesterday I had to stay home to give her some TLD (Tender Loving Discipline) over the fact that she refused to eat dinner, and not because she wasn't hungry but simply because she didn't like what I had made.  I always try to access the situation before administering discipline simply because I want to make sure that she really is being defiant and not acting a certain way because she genuinely needs something else (like a diaper change ect.) My father over reacted to every situation and so I try to take a more mellow approach. 

Anyways Ellie was refusing to eat her meal and instead wanted to go play or have something else to eat and while I am usually all for letting her get down and coming back to the same meal later this has been a re-occuring issue and I feared that she was learning that she didn't have to do what Mommy and Daddy thought was best for her. So I "put my foot down" so to speak and I told her that she had to have 3bites of her meal and then she could get down and play. Well about 1hr 1/2 later she finally ate her 3bites and she did it joyfully, and willingly, and I felt proud for not giving into her whining and pleas. Because I knew for that moment I had did what was best for her given that she hadn't eaten anything except a peanut butter and jelly sandwich all day.  And I must say she is learning how to be obedient but I am praying that we will teach her through all this a heart change as well...it's hard to work on heart issues when the child is 2yrs. But I try to say thinks like "Jesus is pleased when you listen to mommy." And "God wants us to be obedient to our parents because this is what is good for us."  But truthfully sometimes all I can do is pray because I don't want to raise a legalistic child that as long as she follows the rules all will go well for her.  I pray that she is listening as much as a 2yr old can listen and that her heart will be transformed and not just her actions.

My "big girl" is learning how to use the potty. I am by no means expecting that a 26month old to get this thing down right away but she seems to be more interested than usual..she has somethings backwards though.. Like she says "I need poop" when she really needs to go pee...lol. And she's good at saying "i need potty" when she really just wants to feel like a big girl and sit on it. So very sweet.

She's my big girl now :) I am loving every minute of it! (oh and that's a pull up she is wearing :) )