Your child is growing like crazy and has become a full-fledged family member. The sense of helplessness is gone and the baby’s own will is starting to reveal itself more and more. The first steps are taken and he goes on an adventure, with all the consequences that entails. Your baby has become a toddler. Raising a toddler becomes a lot more complex than a baby. A number of interests have been added and the development during this period is enormous. He is going to broaden his interests and every day he comes up with new exploration trips. It is of course fantastic that the little researcher goes out to explore, but there are also dangers lurking here. Parenting is nothing more than guiding his development in the safest way possible without restricting him.
This article is largely based on my own experiences, after having 3 daughters in 4 years that is quite a few. Not only do the girls not look much alike on the outside, they are also very different on the inside. We had to approach all 3 in a different way, but the result was the same for all 3: cheerful, curious little ones who entered the toddler phase confidently and safely.
In this article
- Development
- Physically
- Spiritually
- The toddler
- Chunky pilots
- Stubborn
- Independent
- Conclusion
Development
Physically
The average one-year-old toddler can stand and sometimes the first tentative steps have already been taken. He is fully aware of his surroundings and curious about everything he sees. This is a good thing because it is precisely that curiosity that ensures that he develops and learns new things every day. You should not slow him down here, but it is important that you remain very alert. You shouldn’t let him out of your sight for a moment because even if you think you have stored all the dangerous things high and safe, the little researcher still manages to find something whose consequences are incalculable.
However, it is not useful to remove everything, he can learn that there are things he should not touch. Of course, you shouldn’t practice this with a cup of hot tea, but that plant on the coffee table is fine to remain . Even the most stubborn and stubborn toddler knows after 1000 times what no and yuck mean. This is quite an exhausting period that requires a lot of your patience, but if you persevere with this you will see that it will become easier and your child will accept no more quickly. After all, there are so many other things that are also exciting.
Spiritually
Even though he cannot yet speak well, the toddler is much more mentally advanced than you would initially suspect. You can calmly tell him anything, he understands more than you think. The time of oekiepoekie (some people like to talk to babies this way) is now really over. Although your choice of words should be kept simple, you can speak to your child in a normal, adult manner.
When my eldest was 1½, she once received an advertising brochure in her hands with a beautiful swing on it. With an enthusiastic sigh she let us know that she really wanted that thing. On my Yes bye, try it with your father, she immediately climbed the stairs to ask him her urgent question. With success, by the way; a day later the thing was in the garden. Of course, she soon realized that she could get more done with him than with me.
The toddler
Chunky pilots
Some little ones can be left quietly in a corner with a pile of cuddly toys and safe toys, while other toddlers are still able to make messes even in the playpen. It is no different, you cannot always prevent your child from getting hurt. It’s part of life, if your toddler doesn’t know what pain is, he will never understand you. If you always catch him, he will not learn to fall. You just have bad pilots, that’s the way it is. You can’t always prevent it and some children have to bump themselves 10 times before they realize that the table is hard.
My eldest walked at 9 months, or at least she started running and later learned that walking was also possible. Anatomically speaking, her body was not yet ready, and as a result, top-heavy as she was, she started running faster and faster because she did not yet have the strength to slow down her speed. She was something of a loose cannon and by the time she was 1½, she had already had a black eye 3 times, stitches in her chin and many teeth through her lip. You can have that bad luck and all you can do is avoid as many dangerous situations as possible. Sometimes we even had to tie her up with a harness for her own safety (while the dog is not even on a leash but is always running loose).
Stubborn
Every toddler has their own will. All. A determined toddler who really wants to grab that flower in that beautiful bouquet will not rest until he has succeeded. Your no may stop him for a moment (and sometimes not even that), but only when he has turned over the vase and is covered in flower water will he really understand what you meant by your no. You may get angry, but even a tap on his fingers isn’t that bad at all. That doesn’t traumatize him, it’s worse when he does the same thing with a spoon in a cup of hot tea. He understands an angry reaction to his action very well. Don’t make the common mistake of immediately comforting the toddler who is sad because of your anger; you send out contradictory signals that teach him very different things than you intended. The position doesn’t mean much, so what he did probably isn’t that bad in his eyes. Or, even worse, he realizes that your anger is even more difficult for you than for him, and in no time he will take advantage of it.
Independent
Your toddler’s motor development goes very fast in this phase. Because he discovers that he can do more and more, he will also want to do more and more himself. At the end of the toddler phase, you will hear your little one calling sefdoen more and more often. One of those things that they find very interesting is eating and drinking themselves. Drinking from a bottle or a tumbler cup is not such a problem, but using the spoon yourself can sometimes cause quite a mess. However, it is important that you occasionally take the time to let your little one eat by himself. If your child doesn’t listen to that, you’re lucky, but otherwise you will have to clean a little more every now and then. By allowing the child to try it himself, you stimulate his desire for independence and taking his own initiatives.
Conclusion
The toddler phase is a period in which your child requires a lot of attention from you. It is also a period in which he has to learn a lot. You cheer 10 times a day for another milestone: the snack that this time does not hit the wall but disappears into his mouth, his triumphant bauk when you point to his belly, his first steps, the songs he enthusiastically joins in on your knee. and much more. It is also a period in which you have to be strict with him for the first time, he starts to explore his and your boundaries. Be strict and consistent, he needs clarity. If he gets hurt, don’t make a fuss about it; kisses on ouch and about are often sufficient. You don’t want to make him a squeaker who will run to his mother screaming at every change.