Uncharted Waters

I used to think I knew everything about parenting a two-year old. I used to say parenting a toddler was the easy stuff...black and white. You can't hit your sister, you can put your hands in the toilet, you can't pull items off the shelf at T@rget, if you are throwing a tantrum you go into time out until you chill out and then we will talk it out. Black and white.

Lately I've been treading in a lot of gray areas, that is what happens when you have a toddler that does all the fun things a normal toddler does, but to the extremes.

Extremes not out of being naughty, but out of fear, nervousness and anxiety. I have read several adoption parenting books and Mina seems to have text-book attachment issues.

She tests me daily, sometimes I pass, sometimes I fail. I am having to parent her in a way that feels completely foreign to me. I don't have all the answers anymore. We have good days and really difficult days. Discipline doesn't work with her, it sets her back. Discipline is how I work, I used to say, "If you can't control your 4 yr old than you won't be able to control your 14 yr old" Set the standards early and your kids will know you mean business and you will save yourself a load of problems as they grow. My approach is being tested, I am trying to work it out. I am nervous and hopeful at the same time. I love her with all of my heart and I am committed to figuring out what makes her tick. She is most definitely a sweet, vivacious, funny little girl with a smile to light up a room. We just need to work some stuff out. And then there is this child, the one who seems to feel the most comfortable in her own skin. Sure she's still a baby, but I have a feeling she is going to be a mellow one.. I pray that she will be a mellow one.