Toddler Chat Thread- (all inclusive) - Page 2

[Peony]

This is my resident toddler at the moment. 4 kids, the toddler position changes often.  DS1 is a bright, quiet little guy, he is 2.5y. He acts much younger then his age, and then his speech delays do not help that. My biggest frustration with him is he destroys everything. When he gets sad, mad, anything, he doesn't verbalize but instead goes on a rampage around the house tearing things apart. So much fun to constantly clean up. 

[mommy212]

Do you guys find yourselves watching more TV in the winter? IN the summer we watched 2-3 movies a month together but now we are so bored and I am so cranky and crabby I find it being on almost every day, for 1/2 hour or more. 

[Peony]

Oh yeah. It's been cold and snowy this week, everything we normally do is shut down for x-mas break. I've been sick and trying to finish my year end work reports so we've watched several movies. I always feel bad because my first child never watched TV at this age but this guy has a list of favorite shows he asks for, doo doo, mimi, choo choo, and guppy. Which are Scooby Doo, Mickey Mouse, Chuggington, and Bubble Guppies. He yells at the older kids if they turn on a show for themselves and it isn't something he would watch. 

[Buzzer Beater]

So far we are still holding out and not watching... dd hasn't figured out tv yet and so far is not interested. We do have the news on in the evening and she stands and yells "Man!!!!" and the screen, even if it is a woman.

[organicviolin]

DS is an amazing toddler and oodles of fun.  He loves helping and playing and does the laundry We do grate on each other though.  I'm hoping going out of town will help with that - change up the pace and the people around kwim?  Here's hoping!

[mommy212]

Lately my DS, who is just over 2, has been learning letters (as said above). He is most familiar with A. Lately, he has been reading and finding the A's in everything. When I was reading him his good night story (always a chapter book) he looked through the little letters until he found an A. :) so cute! He seems like he wants to read, and it's really very darling. 

[Snapdragon]

A new thing here for us- I finally found a babysitter that I like! DS is 21 months and we have only left him with my parents and dh's parents so far and evenn so not very often. I am excited about this new addition especially because both ds and I feel comfortable with her.

In other news, I am not at all sure how to go about potty training! Ds is very awate of when he has to poop and pee and will sometimes tell me. But he can't take off his pants and go sit on the potty- yet. Or I can't figure out how to teach him. We have a little seat that goes on the toilet as well as a little floor potty. We got this crazy potty stool thing- which has handles and a big step so it is easy to climb up to the toilet- but I returned it cause it was this huge ugly piece of plastic that took up half of our small bathroom! So I got a little step stool. We are trying to teach ds to climb up to the toilet even to sit. HE does sometimes but only with clothes on. And plus w- the little stool it i shard for him to get up. But he won't sit on his little potty. yesterday he told me he had to poop and I oferred him his potty but he didn't want to- so I just said- okay then poop in your diaper.

At 21 months I feel like we should be starting to potty learn him but I don't know how! ANy tips?

Edited by Snapdragon - 12/30/11 at 9:09pm

[Buzzer Beater]

Snap I'm glad you got a babysitter. We have one, and it saves my sanity. I really really want to stay home with dd2 (I stayed home with dd1 for 3 1/2 years) but sometimes I think I will go batty. We have a college gal come in a few times a week so I can go to the gym or do errands with my mom who needs help from time to time. Dd2 loves loves loves her sitter and squeals when she gets here, then turns to wave to me so I will go away. So cute.

I don't know about potty learning... we have a potty on the floor in the hall near the bathroom, and she sits on it sometimes after she has pooped, and we've caught a couple when she's naked. She's naked a lot, so I think that helps.

[mommy212]

My DS is really dreading the toilet :(. We had a totally botched, poorly done (by me) attempt to potty learn a couple months ago, and he has been so scared of it ever since. Lately he has been hating diaper changed and getting his diaper back on, so we tell him that if he wants to learn to use the potty, he doesn't have to wear diapers/get wiped or changed anymore. He seems to be thinking about it. Sometimes he sits and stares at his potty, opens the top and looks in, then closes it and runs away, lol :)

[goldenwillow]

I'm in.  Our son is 30 months. 

In total awe of him.  He is just exploding with thoughts, words, growth.  Pretty amazing. 

Lately he is saying "I don't know" when asked a question, but not all.  Pretty funny.  Then will go on to figure it out or find what was missing, etc.  He also is talking about things that happened months ago.  What a memory.  Crazy. 

Totally out of diaper in the day for a few months now, trying to transition that into the night.  Has had 4 nights w/o pee this week.  May just need to go with out and just do it.  That is now the plan :)

Snap and Mommy212-  Our LO preferred to be naked too.  I just placed 4 potties around the house and let him go for it.  There were some misses, but all in all very positive.  I told him this last summer I don't like diapers (washing anymore!) and he said he didn't like diapers either (whoo hoo!).  So we rid of the day time diaper.  He didn't really respond to the ring that goes on the big potty, wanted to do it like we do.  So he hovers.   

He now stands at the big boy potty like a little man.  It is funny.  We practiced EC'ing starting around 5 weeks.  He simply would not be in a diaper wet for more than 20 mins. Started EC'ing out of pure frustration and I seemed to have a feeling in my gut or my thigh would feel heated when he was about to pee/poo.  Had no idea there was a word for it back then!  Funny. 

I am totally down with the sitter.  We have only been away from our LO a total of like 8 hours, Grammy's watch.  We live far from family that I trust.  Have had a few folks locally say they would love to but haven't taken them up on it.  I am a little funky about that.  I know it is positive, I just do not trust people that I do not know well.  Grammy watched our son over the holiday so we could go get him some gifts.  It was awesome to just hang with my husband.  It is getting easier to be away as our son gets older. 

Mommy212- Thank you for the thought of finding letters in reading books.  Great idea.  I seriously sang the ABC song too much apparently when he was super little, he tells me "don't like" that song.  Phew! 

Edited by goldenwillow - 12/31/11 at 3:46pm

[Snapdragon]

I do not know what is going on with my 21 (almost 22) month yr old son- he has been SO difficult lately!  I feel like I must be doing something wrong? Or maybe this is just toddlerhood?

He has generally been a pretty good natured kid- not amazingly peaceful always but generally happy etcetera. But lately- omg- he throws a tantrum at the quickest second- like if he doesn't get what he wants right away he tenses up and screams and throws himself on the floor etecetera-

Luckily the tantrums only last for a short time- like less than a minute- and then if I figure out what he is needing (like he wants to use the spoon himself to feed himself not have me do it) he subsides and is happy again.

Lately he freaks out so easily though it is driving me and dh nuts. I am starting to wonder if it is because I am not giving him a good enough diet? I think he needs more iron and definately more veggies- he eats a lot of carbs and dairy and I have to admit some sugar-

juice, etcetera. So I am always trying to work on feeding him better.

But he is just being really hard lately and gets unhappy quickly. But not always- when I take him to fun play places with other kids he is a super sweetie, and usually if we have had a good active outing he is pretty decent for the rest of the day. but is he starts to get bored or if we are not able to have a fun active day he gets SO whiny.

and he goes from happy to angry to back to happy wuickly. but he is grumpy a lot lately. And less cuddely :( He also has a strong preferance for dh over me lately :( he is always like "da da! da da!)

when dh is at work ( I am a sahm) he is totally fine with me but when dh is home he often wants him over me- and it is not cause dh is not home enough- he is home a lot.

anyway- I am just frustrated with ds right now and find myslef losing patience and getting snappy when he is rude to me and gets so grumpy.

HE also hates getting his diaper changed or getting clothes changed- we will be happily playing and then I hjave to change him and he just freaks out every time. I just hold my leg over him and get it done.

He is also into everything- he has a million great and cute and sweet adorable things going on at the same time as all this- he is not a high needs kid- but lately he is just being so difficult.

Like today we took him for a short visit to the library- which he used to love- but the last 4 or so times we take him there he starts yelling and getting all mad. Today we got there and he threw himself on the floor and yelled, and then just wanted to go walk ouside. He is SO opiniopnated- which I totally respect- and I know he is learning his world and his boundaries- but it is hard right now. I wonder if I am doing or not doing somehting I should be, or if it is just a normal stage of toddlehood?

[Snapdragon]

funny thing is- today, the day aftre I posted above- ds was just as happy and sweet as can be. moody for sure- some days are great some days not so much!

[mommy212]

Never let your toddler know you can draw their faorite things (trains, perhaps?) because you will always have to draw it, 8000 times a day. 

[SunRise]

HAHA SO true. My daughter is constantly asking me to draw Elmo.

Originally Posted by mommy212 

Never let your toddler know you can draw their faorite things (trains, perhaps?) because you will always have to draw it, 8000 times a day. 

[SunRise]

Chit chat anyone...

Potty training?

Talking, new words?

Favourite things to do?

Naps?

Day care, babysitters, play groups?

Eating habits?

Any other topics...?

I'll come back a little later, w/ input.

[wishin'&hopin']

My newly minted two year old continues to delight us!  He's absolutely adorable and we are through the moon with him.  We've really started to see how he "holds it together" for company/occasions and will then lose it when he's alone with us (for example, total charmer at a family wedding...took him back to the hotel for his normal bedtime/routine and he totally lost it for hours)...he's a people person with fairly high sensitivity (like his mothers!).

We have a fairly regular play group and they are all just starting to get the concept of playing with...kind of ;)  He's a good eater, will taste about anything I offer (even if he then decides he doesn't care for it) and he loves anything tomato based (including salsa).  He nurses 3 times a day.  He can also assemble 12 piece jig saw puzzles (LOVE the mudpuppy brand!) and loves being read to.  

He has his moments...he IS 2...and has been sick this week with a stomach bug and fairly high fever so WAY too much screen time this week (especially on the heels of travel when he got to watch way more than usual).

My biggest concerns have to do with talking, he has about 20 words but only about 3 that anyone besides us can understand (with the exception of animal noises).  He'll earnestly repeat things we ask him to say, but his repetition always sounds like the same two syllables of babble.  I'll be speaking to the doctor about a speech evaluation at his 2 year visit.  We've been saying for months now that we'd worry if he wasn't talking more at 2...and now he's 2.  There are a couple of other things that have begun to worry me a bit (for example, he doesn't take off his own socks...or other clothing for that matter.  I don't know if it's because he can't or if it's because he just doesn't care about it--he does take off his hats and sunglasses)  He's so mellow in general that some of the developmental stuff that he doesn't do I've been assuming is just because he doesn't care about it.  He's also the kind of kid who tends not to do something until he has internally mastered it...

[Snapdragon]

my 2 yr old is such a trooper today. I usually do my best each day to give him some kind of activity- either we go to a play place or a long walk or play outside for a long time or some combo. Today my back is really sore- sort of this on going thing I am working on with my body- making improvement but today I just feel lousy and weak- even picking up ds is hard today. So I am low energy big time. I did manage to take ds out the the grocery store which was fun but other than that we have not done too much. anyway- I put him for his nap early none the less as I was just spent from feeling weak today- and I am so grateful  that he actually went down easy for an early nap despite having had a very non active morning. Now I can have a little time to try to tend to my body. It was a hard morning though- it is hard being a mom when you don't feel well but your kid still needs you. I was trying to find the balance bewteen tending ds and tending me. Just happy for a little respit and rest time right now. whew.

[SunRise]

My toddler is 26 months and she is delightful.  She laughs, jokes, she is goofy and nurtures and has the highest pitch screech. yikes! She is forming 3+ word sentences - I love waiting and hearing her work out her thought process to get the sentence out. She repeats everything we say and answers questions.

The big thing right now is she will poo in the toilet and doesnt like to poo in her diaper anymore, but she doesn't have the concept of going to the toilet or telling me she has to go,  instead she jumps around, gets antsy and uncomfortable. When I clue in, I take her and she (now) happily sits on the toilet.  I'm liking this progression ...

eventually will get to a next stage, when we all seem ready.

She is a bit picky with her eating and I am less insistent (2nd child, my age?). She likes salmon, fruits, yogurt, toast and butter, hotdogs, macaroni, spaghetti and meat sauce. Not so good with veggies anymore, need to work them in. 

She comes to work with me on Mondays, goes to a babysitter for three days and on fridays she started a play group. When her dad picks her up for this group, he notices that she is the most enthusiastic dancer, marcher, singer, drum player....

I dont find that she tantrums (yet!). She objects to things, but being my second child, I just continue with our direction and her objection is short lived. But with her dad, he usually accommodates her every whim and wish so she may object much longer with him until he gives in.

So different then our calm, stoic boy. My son was similar to the above poster, careful and wanted to master things before sharing it with the rest of the world. This was particularly true for his speech ... he did say a couple words but nothing like how my daughter is learning to speak. Since he was my first I didnt have any expectations ... but I do remember the pediatricians being  a bit concerned and paying attention to this aspect of his development. When he was in his late 2 early threes he was talking perfectly.  It has been really fun seeing how she develops as she is so vocal and external.