She has finally allowed me to place her in the car seat, and after a quick scuffle about who would snap together which of the three buckles, she pushes her hair back from her forehead and sticks her chin up with self satisfaction. She wins a lot of battles. She says she wants some crackers, so as I run back in the house to get my cell phone I grab a roll of Ritz and tear it open. I reach backwards from the front seat to hand her two crackers and she doesn't take them, ignores me.
"Eva, take the crackers," I say.
Silence. I cannot see her because she is behind me and my shoulder hurts so I pull my arm forward and start the car. I am backing out of the driveway when she starts screaming.
"I want crackers! I want crackers!"
The garage door slowly closes and I unwind the twisty tie and pull out two crackers and reach back behind me again. She slaps at my hand.
"No! I don't want them!"
"I thought you wanted them., Here. Take them. You like them." I wave them and wait. She doesn't take them and I place them on the console beside me and pull out onto the road.
"Crackers! Crackers. I want crackers!" she yells over and over again as we move along the county road and up to the main highway two miles away.
I reach over and hand them to her and she takes them and quiets.
Last night in the 45 minutes after we arrived home Eva fought the car seat and locked Sam and I in the garage and threw her boots across the kitchen and slapped the milk because it was in the wrong cup and locked herself in the bathroom long enough to pile all her clothes on the floor and pee on them. I don't remember Sam being this difficult at two.
In the car I turn the rear view mirror to make sure Sam's seat belt is pulled across his chest and properly latched under the arm of his booster seat.
"See how good I'm being?" Sam says from the other side of the car. "Can I pick the song because I'm being so good? I want number 3."
And as soon as the music starts and Willie Nelson and Kid Rock belt out a story about the last stand in open country Eva starts screaming that No she does not like this song! She does not want this song!
I sigh and turn it up.
