The Opinionated Toddler

When Harlan turned one I quit cold turkey with giving her a bottle, nursing her, and eating baby food . I figured that she was such a good eater with baby food that giving her real people food was going to be a breeze. Why wouldn’t she love the real stuff like chicken nuggets and macaroni and cheese? Every other kid seems to.

I was in for a big surprise when I realized she was the pickiest eater I have ever met. I am pretty picky when it comes to food myself, but I would have never thought that I could pass that trait onto my daughter. One day she will love something, the next she hates it. When she tells me she is hungry we both have to go into the kitchen to pick out what she is going to eat. It’s a bit stressful, but it’s become our normal so I’ve learned to just go with it.

I can definitely handle having Harlan be opinionated about food, as she has learned from the best. But what I’ve learned lately is that my little 17-month old now has an opinion about many things in her life. The other day we were getting ready to go out so I tried putting on her shoes and she flat out refused to put them on. Refused. Not because she didn’t want to wear shoes, but because she didn’t want to wear those shoes. She went to her shoe drawer and picked out a pair of shoes that really weren’t appropriate for the weather or the place we were going. I wasn’t in the mood for a tantrum at the moment so I just let her wear them. I am sure I probably got a couple of looks along the way for her lack of warmth on her feet, but what was I to do? {cue the, “just be a parent” comments}

It doesn’t just stop with shoes. MacKay was getting her dressed yesterday morning and picked out a shirt for her to wear. She took one look at it and told him “no.” When I heard her tell him that I ran to her room and asked her if she wanted to wear that shirt today {as I had just been through this situation with the shoes} and as she told her daddy, she told me “no.” So we went to her closet together and picked out an outfit. She wanted to wear a dress that was more appropriate for warmer weather (she must really be looking forward to spring) so I put it on her and threw on leggings under it to keep her warm. It was a nice compromise for both of us.

Don’t think that because I let her wear what she wants that I give in to her every time. She doesn’t always get to watch Yo Gabba Gabba when she asks {which is often} and I stopped cooking her more than one meal if she refuses to eat the one I cooked for her. But as I sit and think about all of these opinions she has on the little things in her life, I realize that she is starting to find a voice within herself and she wants to let it be known. This is one more step forward in her independence and another string that I must cut as I let my baby become a little girl.