Fastidious may not be the absolute best description of DS's behavior, but I'm just wanting to make sure that the behaviors I'm seeing are normal toddler behaviors (I think they probably are...).
DS is 19 months. He seems very attuned to the world around him and often notices when something has changed in his environment. Along these lines, if something seems "out of order" to him - e.g. a snowboot has toppled over onto its side, a box that once was in a stack of boxes is now sitting by itself next to the stack - he'll say "Uh-oh" a bunch of times until we acknowledge what he's noticing. We don't necessarily have to "fix" the situation, so much as acknowledge that, yes, something is not how it was before ("Yep. Sometimes the boots fall over. But it's ok"). DH said one time DS was repeatedly saying "uh oh" and getting increasingly upset until DH realized that DS had noticed that one of the rubber gloves for washing dishes had fallen on the floor. I'm assuming he was getting upset because it took awhile for DH to realize what the "uh oh" was about. "Uh oh" is something DH and I say a bunch (I imagine most parents do) when something unexpected or perhaps somewhat unfortunate has happened, butu we're never really dramatic about it.
The other piece of this is that DS will often request a napkin when he's eating so he can wipe his hands (or, yesterday, his nose when he got some oatmeal on it). He's not wiping off anything that I wouldn't also wipe off (of him, though usually not till he's done eating, or myself), and there still many times when he has, say, yogurt all over his face and hands and doesn't seem to mind. I just wondered if it was unusual for a kid his age to be cognizant of needing/wanting to wipe his hands off.
So...all normal, yes?
DS is 19 months. He seems very attuned to the world around him and often notices when something has changed in his environment. Along these lines, if something seems "out of order" to him - e.g. a snowboot has toppled over onto its side, a box that once was in a stack of boxes is now sitting by itself next to the stack - he'll say "Uh-oh" a bunch of times until we acknowledge what he's noticing. We don't necessarily have to "fix" the situation, so much as acknowledge that, yes, something is not how it was before ("Yep. Sometimes the boots fall over. But it's ok"). DH said one time DS was repeatedly saying "uh oh" and getting increasingly upset until DH realized that DS had noticed that one of the rubber gloves for washing dishes had fallen on the floor. I'm assuming he was getting upset because it took awhile for DH to realize what the "uh oh" was about. "Uh oh" is something DH and I say a bunch (I imagine most parents do) when something unexpected or perhaps somewhat unfortunate has happened, butu we're never really dramatic about it.
The other piece of this is that DS will often request a napkin when he's eating so he can wipe his hands (or, yesterday, his nose when he got some oatmeal on it). He's not wiping off anything that I wouldn't also wipe off (of him, though usually not till he's done eating, or myself), and there still many times when he has, say, yogurt all over his face and hands and doesn't seem to mind. I just wondered if it was unusual for a kid his age to be cognizant of needing/wanting to wipe his hands off.
So...all normal, yes?
Enjoy it!
. While there will be kids with these types of behaviors it isn't typical toddler development. Many of the behaviors described here are indications of some sensory issues. Now, with that said, it doesn't mean that there are any REAL issues here. Behaviors like these only become issues when they interefere with a child's ability to go about their day. A toddler that won't play with messy activities could miss out on some important developmental experiences.
