The life and times of a two year old

Hey everybody! I know, I just posted two days ago. Crazy. I'm not due for more witty sarcasm for at least a week. Somebody stop me. But sometimes, you just have to bite the bullet.

Madeline is getting older and wiser. Or at least she thinks she is. Basically, we've hit that lovely do-it-yourself stage, and any and all help from me is an affront to her dignity. If I do up the straps on her shoes, she has to undo them and do it herself. She wants to be the one to put in movies and DVDs, even if it is upside down. She wants to buckle herself in the car seat, clip her own nails, pick out and put on her own clothes, tuck herself in, and cross the road without holding my hand. Note that a good majority of these things are dangerous/impossible/destructive for a two year old, and therein lies our source of tension. Don't get me wrong, I would love for her to be able to get dressed herself, use the bathroom herself, and be totally independent. But statistics suggest she'll be dependent on me for some portion of her needs for at least 16 more years. We're trying to explain that to her, but she tends to get distracted by bugs in the window or the sun going behind a cloud, so we're doing what we can with sporadic thirty second lectures.

Madeline is also getting excited for big changes in her life. Not the ones that could happen in the next six months, like potty training or sisterhood. Madeline looks forward to things far in the future, because she likes to see the big picture. She likes to put on a backpack and wait by the window for a school bus to take her to kindergarten. (I haven't the heart to tell her that the school buses have taken a hiatus until September and she'll be sitting at that window for a while.) She's all about getting married in a pretty dress, either at the temple or WalMart. Whichever is closer. And she's definitely got her career as a truck driver all mapped out, and is just frustrated that they won't give her a driver's license until she gets tall enough to reach the pedals. Or, if that doesn't work out, she'll probably become a professional streaker, as she has recently discovered the thrill of running around au natural. We're such proud parents.