Oh, the terror.

Lilly has really been testing me a ton lately. She can be such a sweetheart one day and a total terror the next. Hooray for me, today was one of those Terrible days. (Yup! Terrible! With a capital T!)

I'm not sure if it's just me being cranky (or grumpy as Lilly likes to say. "Hey Mama, don't be grumpy to me!") or if the tiny two-year-old woke up on the wrong side of the bed, but sometimes things are not too pleasant in the Ronin home. (I mean, don't fret. We are still happy. We laugh and hug and kiss and cuddle. No one is ever in any danger, but sometimes... well, let's just say we all yell a little more than we should. And some days, one of us spends a lot of time staring into a corner.)

A friend of mine invited us to one of those bounce house party places yesterday. I've been meaning to take the girls to one of these joints to help work out the wiggles, so I totally jumped at the chance. Staying cooped up in our apartment can drive anyone batty, especially a toddler. (And let's not forget about the mother of said toddler. Pity me.) I told Lilly all about the fun bouncer place, to which she replied, "Hey! I no go in bouncer! I'm no baby! I a big girl!"

Anyway, we woke up this morning ready to bounce. (Ha!) And then the fun started. Suddenly, Lilly couldn't understand a word I said. ("Huh? Mommy? Huh?! Huh?! Huh?!" X infinity.) Oh, and then she couldn't walk near her sister without "accidentally" kicking her. (Yep. You read that right.) And of course, asking her to brush her teeth was the equivalent of asking her to swallow poison... or glass shards... or poisonous glass shards.

Yeah. Let's just say... things were not all rainbows and puppies today.

So, you're probably thinking, What the eff, Mom? She did all that and you still took her to the bouncey party fun kingdom?! Psh. You are a total pushover. I hate you.

Believe me, I considered canceling our plans. I threatened to do it a million times. But then I thought, Who am I kidding?! I can't stay home with this maniac any longer. As God as my witness, I will bounce the demons out of this crazy child.

So, we went to the bounce-a-rama zone. We bounced. We jumped. We both fell flat on our faces more than a few times. We had a great afternoon.

I watched my little girl go from struggling to climb the ladders to practically jumping over them all together to reach the giant slides. She had a such a wonderful day... and I was reminded of what a sweetheart she really is.

When we first got there, she grabbed my hand and asked me to go explore with her. When we got to the top of the tallest slide, she clutched my arm and said, "Hold me tight, Mommy." When we sat down for a water break, she squeezed my leg and said, "I'm having so much fun! So! Much! FUUUUN!"

Yeah, sometimes she's a handful. Sometimes I look at her and ask myself, Who's demon spawn is this? Haha... Kidding.

Sorta.

Of course, I'm trying to work on being more patient with her. I've been trying to get her out of the house more often and that seems to be helping... but we still have our struggles. We aren't perfect. Our life isn't a series of DIY projects and cool photos and yummy desserts. Like I said earlier, some days, we yell a lot. And cry. And go on time-outs. But no matter how challenging she can be, I am always reminded of what a loving little bug she is.

Lillian Grace, you drive me crazy. From the day you were born, you have kept me on my toes. You make my heart dance and you make me the happiest mommy ever. Even when you make me want to scream, you still manage to make me want to smile. I am thankful for you... challenging days and all.