It’s got to be one of the top-five annoying remarks made by strangers: Right up there with “Shouldn’t that baby be wearing a hat?” comes “Just wait till she’s two! Then you’ll be in for it!” And, if the comment comes when your not-quite-two-year-old has dissolved into a howling puddle of misery at the grocery store, even the most laidback parent might feel a stab of fear. Surely it can’t get worse, you think to yourself. And for a whole year! Just how much truth is there to the idea of the terrible twos?
Well, as with most clichés, there’s something true at the heart of the saying. Two-year-olds ARE a handful. But so are children of many ages. Then why is two labeled the magical age of discontent? Below, a few generalizations about the terrible twos — and the reasons they’re really not so terrible after all.