The Toddler Wars: Episode 3 - Life-Altering Changes and Adjusting to Them

So, I really did have every intention of blogging my way through this move. Which, thinking back, is a very funny thought. I'm not really sure where I thought I would find the time or extra energy to post everyday about our new house. Obviously, it didn't happen. We originally thought we would be moving into our new house within 2 days. Also a very funny thought. The house ended up being uninhabitable, (which will be completely outlined in a later post) and we had to move in with J's parents for a couple weeks. I also spent a long weekend up at my parent's house with Aria, and we finally were able to move in 16 days after we closed. Again, more details on the move and reno will definitely be coming. Just needed to provide some context.

I don't think it's a secret to anyone who knows anything about toddlers that they don't like change. They don't like when their routine changes, especially when it changes repeatedly over the course of a couple weeks. Poor Aria went through a toddler's worst nightmare during this move. Between the old apartment, her Wardell and Halleck grandparent's houses and the new house, she stayed in 4 different houses over 2 weeks. Talk about traumatizing. By the time we were moving into the new house, every time she got into bed, it took her a while to figure out that she was supposed to be sleeping.

She was also not at all used to the fact that not only was J gone all day, but so was I. We spent all day everyday over at the new house trying to get it to the point where we could bring Aria into it. While we were killing ourselves for her own good, she didn't understand at all why we kept leaving her behind. Some days, I would only see her around lunch time for an hour or so, and many of those days, J wouldn't see her at all. It was definitely rough, but all that hard work has really paid off.

Overall, she did really well, however. She's never been one who adjusts to schedule changes well, and we were bracing for the worst. "The worst" didn't really come until the last couple of days, when I think she just gave up on trying to figure out what was going on in her little life. We had a couple major meltdowns towards the end, but really, it could have been worse.

By now, she's pretty much completely adjusted to the "new house," as she still calls it. She is still incredibly clingy when new people come over or when we leave her with a Sunday School worker or babysitter. She gets very nervous if we walk out of the room without letting her know, and it's even worse if we "hand her off" to someone and walk away. Panic will most certainly ensue. In a certain twisted way, it makes me feel kinda loved, but of course it's a stage that we're hoping she outgrows soon. I'm sure her Sunday School teachers feel the same way...