My two daily mantras

I currently have 2 mantras I say on a daily basis when discussing my 2 year old daughter and 1 year old son.

They are…

“It’s just a phase”

and my favourite, blanket, cover all

“He’s teething”

I will take you through them in turn.

The first is my internal mantra. It makes me feel better in any given situation. If I am finding my daughters never ending outfit changes throughout the day because she is too hot/ too cold/ doesn’t want to wear a dress/top/leggings, or whatever I have put her in. When she throws a mega tantrum because I dare tell her she can’t eat her apple whilst scooting, or I gave her the wrong cup for her water and not her ‘grandad cup’. When my son screams as loudly as he can because his sister has something he wants, or I won’t let him put his hand in my hot tea, or I bring him back when he has toddled off to the top of a cliff. For all those, daily, toddler stresses I tell myself “it’s just a phase” and it becomes slightly more manageable. I mean how long can a phase last? Surely it’s got to end soon? Right? Please tell me that’s true?

The second – teething, is my external phrase. It’s my catch all and one I say loudly. I have been using teething since my first child was about 3 months when I mistakenly believed that because my daughter had found her hand she must be teething. I mean she is a genius, she’s the first born, she will do everything super early, of course she’s already teething (she wasn’t, and incidentally she didn’t) However I still find myself regularly using it. Now with my youngest, for example, when he woke the other morning at 4:30am and was inconsolable, so much so that by 5:15 we couldn’t take it anymore and decided to put him in the car so my husband could drive him around to settle him. The neighbours and the people opposite were all awoken from their blissful, non-child filled sleep. They asked what was wrong and were worried he had some major health issue. I said ‘he’s teething’ and that was enough. It seemed a sufficient answer that all were happy with. If he cries through a playdate and I’m getting embarrassed, “he’s teething”. If in the supermarket he has a mini meltdown “he’s teething”. It’s something every parent relates to and a phase (definitely a phase) most remember all too well.

What are your favourite catch all phrases or mantras?

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