Loving Margaret Mary

The twos have been both terrific and terrible at the same time. Margaret Mary is talking up a storm and has such sweet, funny things to day. Today, Jason looked into her eyes and said "Margaret Mary, I love you," to which she replied "I love cupcakes." :) I am never bored and really find myself enjoying time spent with her. The tantrums, on the other hand, have been intense. Most of her tantrums are thrown out of frustration. She wants to do everything herself and gets really upset when she can't do it, or we don't understand what she is asking for. One of our friends at church is really into Montessori and has been teaching me a little about it. The basic theory is that children love order and thrive when everything has a time and a place. You observe your child, and when you perceive a "sensitive period" (aka, a time when they seem really receptive to learning or really interested in something), you use that time to teach. Montessori is also really big on teaching children how to do practical things, like make their own snacks, make their beds, clean up, etc. The idea is to have a controlled environment so that children can do things themselves and succeed at doing these things, (not throwing a fit out of frustration because they cant do these things). So, I have a little pitcher and a cup, and I set the table so that Margaret Mary can pour her own milk. I also make a tray with her snack on it, unassembled, and show her how to assemble it herself. Everything is age appropriate, and therefore MM get soooo excited when she succeeds at doing something "big girl" by "herself." On days when I set her up for success at doing things by herself, she is more confident, receptive, and eager for help with other things (she has already proved to herself she's a big girl). On days when our routine is off, and I don't create opportunities to succeed, she has ALOT more tantrums and despises it when I try to help her with something. I have been really impressed with Montessori theory and am excited to learn more, and to set up my home in a way my daughter can thrive. I will keep you update on how this all goes...