The Threenager

It all started weeks before her third birthday when she’d have a meltdown over clothing choices I made for her. In the past she wouldn’t blink an eyelid at my selections. I’d dress her, and that’d be the end of it. Now, it’s only the beginning…

“I not wearing undies!” she screams as she flings them across the room, and continues to tell me that she’s not going to wear anything that I’ve pulled out for her.

She ruffles through her drawers for the perfect skirt, with the ultimate twirl-factor and eventually teams it with her plastic pink sparkly heels.

Mood swings are a daily occurrence, and heated debates usually follow. “Don’t talk me like that!” she yells as I raise my voice to try and reason with her.

All my make-up has to be placed well out of reach otherwise she likes to make herself up, and when she manages to get her hands on some she always goes over the top.

Since blowing three candles on her cake and officially becoming a threenager she’s fallen in love. “I love Thomas,” she tells me as we drive to Kindy. I smirk because I know there is just one Thomas, he’s the teacher’s son and he’s four years her senior.

“I’m going to give him this,” she says raising her closed fist with something hidden within. As we walk into Kindy I ask her to show me what’s in her hands. Her teeny hands unfold and reveal the gift. It’s a pink heart, for Thomas.

It’s only just begun. She has her heart for Thomas, but I still have her heart. I carry it in my heart. I always will.

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23 thoughts on “The Threenager”

  1. I remember those days! My daughter has always been a fashionista and still is at the age of 24. (She is a hair stylist today.)

    When she went to kindergarten I went to Carter's and bought all these cute outfits. Would she wear them? No! She wore only dresses. With clip on earrings – real ones she talked her grandmother in parting with, and lace gloves from the 50s that she found in my drawer. She looked like Blossom from that TV show without ever watching the show!

    Threenager is the perfect word!! I've never heard that before. It's perfect.

  2. Oh, yeah, we're there too. Three. Isn't it great? Hopefully, hopefully, we will be rewarded someday for what we are putting up with now. Maybe?

  3. I have a threenager too. Only she hys turned four, nearly five. Chantelle, you write more lovingly about it that I did!

    Threenager

    Lexie's love is called Thomas too.

    Lacey shows such determination in that photo Chantelle – she probably is driving you barmy, but the girl has style…

    xx

  4. We have a Threenager residing in our home as well. She uses the lines “it's not fair”, “you don't believe me”, “stop it mummy your spoilin my day” – the list goes on.

    I haven't been able to get aurelia to choose clothes for ages – every day I could win the Nobel Peace Prize in an effort to get her dressed. She also is guaranteed to ask “mummy I want two braids that go right down” when I want her to wear a headband so we can actually get out the door.

    Her latest line “I want an iPhone mummy – not a tend one – a real one”

    Heaven help us

  5. Threenager! I love it! LOL My hubby wants a daughter so badly. I think I'll have him read this post. Then maybe he'll finally realise we'd be really happy with 2 boys! 😉

  6. I think I need a twirly skirt, today. I only wear jeans, but still.

    Beautiful post … she is so CUTE with those curls! And I so relate .. Rocco has been a threenager since the day he was born. Actually no, he was born a cranky crotchety old man, sent to give me the biggest lesson in patience ever.

  7. Soon she will be 17 and you will be wishing for the “threenager” days back. That is what I tell myself when Miss Moo is being a tad difficult….I try to remind myself to soak up every little detail and laugh it off because they grow up so damn quickly! That and if I laugh, it means I won't cry! 🙂

  8. Love this post :-). I stopped dicussing clothes with my daughters when they were about 1.5. I just veto when the outfit does not match the weather or the brand new princess shoes want to explore the sandbox ;-). Mood swings are supposed to be really bad with girls but I don't quite agree. It seems that all our children are pretty oppinionated at times ;-). I keep telling myself it's just a phase ;-). Have a wonderful day – maks 🙂

  9. Oh how I can relate! My Threenager is now 4 and still going strong with the attitude and my choice of clothing for her. I learned the hard way about keeping my make-up out of reach, although it was my son who found it…. check it out my last post, caught in the act!!

  10. They would be so cute and funny if they weren't so… not cute and unfunny!!

    Just know this: you HAVE to beat the threenager. You just HAVE to. This is our mini-warm-up for the and if we don't win at 3, we've got no change at 13. I'm sure that's made you feel muuuuuch better, right?

    I don't mind what my girls want to wear and probably won't really when they're older. I do mind how they talk to people now and definitely will when they are older. So I focus on that.

    I guess I'm making it up like that as I go along. x

  11. If I were a three year old girl I would only want skirts that twirl too! Instead I am old and have 3 sons so there are no skirts that twirl here. They say that three year old boys have testosterone equivilant to that of 14 year old boys. Maybe there is something similar going on with little girls too?

  12. Such a great age Chantelle. My MIL told me to stop causing problems, and know ahead of time what will happen. When it comes to clothes, don't even go there, just let them do it, and there you go, no problems. LOL, she is wise….sometimes. Just make sure there are not clothes around in the wardrobe/draws that you really don't want her to wear.

    Jo

  13. Bella is the same, Some days she can't wear the twirly skirt or dress & complains to everyone that listens that I am mean. Just like she always has to wear her pink glitter shoes, which arent even glitter anymore.
    Lets hope its a stage.
    x

  14. Just keep reminding yourself it is just a phase, and she will be over it soon, and onto the next one. Just this week, our almost 5 year old has been one walking attitude, almost unrecognisable to her normal polite and happy self. It has been so challenging, and I am getting more and more scared of when she really will be a teenager!
    Yes, they capture your heart. Squish.

  15. What a beautiful post Chantelle. The threenager, I love it! It is so not pretty though. I have the male version, not too unlike the girly version by the sounds of it.
    Oh why is three such a difficult age?!
    They're cute with their crushes though, Angus has had a couple of preschool loves… and he's only been going for 3 months!

  16. Oooh Lacey and Thomas xoxo

    You mean it gets worse!!!

    Anyone outside of my house may have laughed as they heard “DON”T WANT DORA ON MY BUM” and I may have as well any other day, but chasing a 2 and a half Y.O. after every piece of clothing is put on is not my idea of fun when we are already late. And we have shoe tantrums in this house.
    Somedays I choose my battles wisely.
    P.S. love that pic, look at those curls!!!

  17. Is it normal then for a boy not even two yet to be telling us what he wants to wear???!!!! I'm scared.

    No mama – toot-toot (thomas t-shirt)
    No mama – firetruck (firetruck pjs)

    This started when he was around 22mths – I think we may have a little metrosexual on our hands. I'm glad he doesn't like girls yet though.

    Good luck with your little threenager.

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