So far as I can, tell the main difference between two year olds and three year olds is that three year olds talk more.
A lot more.
Let’s say you were driving in a car with a two year old and she demanded water but there wasn’t any. You would tell her that there was no water and then there would be a high probability that pouting and screaming would follow. It would be loud, dramatic, completely unreasonable and involve lots of foot flailing on the two year olds part and teeth gritting on the mother’s part and then it would be done.
That’s the two year old way.
However, if you were driving in a car with a three year old and she demanded water but there wasn’t any, it might go something like this…
Jane: “I’m thirsty.”
Me: “Sorry, I don’t have any water.”
Jane: “Can I have some water please.”
Me: “No Jane, I don’t have any water.”
Jane: “PLEASE, can I have some water.”
Me: “Jane. I don’t have anything to drink in the car or I would give you some but I don’t have anything.”
Jane: “Mom, I’m thirsty!”
Me: “I know.”
Jane: “Can I have some Diet Coke.”
Me: “I don’t even have any Diet Coke. I don’t have anything to drink. See?” (As I hand back all available empty liquid containers so she can see for herself.)
Jane: “BUT MOM! PLEASE CAN I HAVE A DRINK!?”
Me: “When we get home you can have some, sure.”
Jane: (crying) “Please can I have some water.”
Me: “As soon as we get home.”
Jane: “Mom? Can we go to the gas station?”
Me: “Well there aren’t any gas stations here and anyways I forgot my wallet so I don’t have any money with me to buy anything to drink.”
Jane: “Please can we go to the gas station?”
Me: “All there is between here and home is cornfields and I don’t have any money to buy anything. So, we’ll get water at home.”
Jane: “I’m THIRSTY!!!”
Me: …..
Jane: “Please can I have water.”
Me: ….
Jane: “MOM! I NEED WATER!!!!!”
Me: “Seriously, I have nothing! I can’t get anything, we’ll be home soon, you just have to wait!”
Jane: “PLEASE!!!!!!”
…
Thirty minutes of this continual and terrible conversation later you’d be twenty minutes past the point where your sanity chose to jump into a snowy ditch and abandon you but you’d be home, getting the kid an *&#% drink of water.
That’s the three year old way.
And they call it the terrible twos…
Behind the Willows 
Awesome as always and soooo painfully true! My fourth child is currently three so I’m pretty familiar with this “charming” stage! 😉
That’s what they should call it right? ” The Charming Three’s” 🙂
Exactly! Too bad sarcasm is not supposed to be good…as ways of expressing oneself go, it’s so awfully fun! 😉
😀
Oh wow. I guess I have an interesting road ahead of me with Lilly.. 😣
I can only speak up to age almost 8 but I would say that so far it’s always interesting.
Always.
🙂
I don’t know whether that’s a good thing or a bad thing :p A little bit of both I suppose?
Well there is good interesting and bad interesting right? Just not boring interesting. So I’m going with overall a good thing.
Ah yes…this brings back such delightful memories…when you have to have the patience of a saint just to get through the day 🙂
I’m not sure my teeth grinding reaction can be classified as “patience of a saint.” Perhaps if I give it some years it’ll look just like that in hindsight? 🙂
Hahahahahaha…..perfect Jessie, you got it perfect!
Does this laughter happen to have any relation to Johnny’s comment of “I think I might have been just like that.” ???
2 and 3 are years I have blocked out with M’s childhood. Apparently I had a good reason for that.
Poor, parched Jane. 😀
It’s a good thing she drank a big glass of water when we got to the house. I might have spontaneously combusted had she refused!
Love the way you write! You keep humor in….bravo!
I love the way you comment! It makes me smile, thanks! 🙂
There’s no arguing with that strategy! Hoo boy 🙂