Hope you're having a good week in this surprisingly warm November weather! You might remember a while ago I wrote an A-Z of pregnancy & an A-Z parenthood, I mentioned I would do one once Abbie was well into toddlerhood too so I could compare what has changed and what's stayed the same, it really is quite amazing just how much they change in almost 2 years! If you fancy reading my other 2 others, i've linked them below for you! :)
A-Z of pregnancy
A-Z of parenthood
Alphabet That proud moment when they recite the alphabet by themselves for the first time, after singing it to them since they were about 6 weeks old, now they can sing it back to you, the pride is overwhelming!
Ball pool Probably the best thing since milk to toddlers! Lots of colours, lots of balls and lots of fun, for Mum & Dad too :D Cuddly I think your toddler goes one way or the other, either they don't want cuddles at all unless it's when they want, or they are super cuddly, luckily for us, Abbie is the latter, she will come up to us multiple times a day, cuddle up and even gives us kisses! Especially when she's tired, she'll snuggle up on my lap and let me stroke her hair :)
Daring Walking across the arm and back of the sofa, crawling through spaces that are clearly too small and they will get stuck, jumping off things that no sane adult would even think about doing without a parachute..ok a little exaggeration but they really have no fear at this age!
Energetic As soon as they wake up, they go from 0-100 within 10 minutes of being awake, so whilst you're still trying to make your way out of bed, they're at the stair gate calling for you to go 'danstairs' and requesting to go into their high chair for a full english breakfast and cbeebies!
Fun Oh god they are so much fun as toddlers, they can run away from you, so chase is always a fun game, especially when they get so excited they giggle whilst running, then they trip over, then they laugh more, so adorable! But now they're able to do so much, you can really enjoy having a little person around, dancing together, making crafts, painting, going on outdoor adventures and the classic favorite of hide and seek, you can relive your childhood again (YES!)
Growing At a ridiculous pace as well, one minute they're snuggled against your chest, and now they're almost the entire length of your legs and outgrowing their clothes every 6 months!
Happy When your toddler is happy, it makes the day seem like a walk in the park, you wonder why people ever complain about having a 2 year old and you feel like asking all your friends if you can babysit their kids all at once because you now feel like superwoman, turns out it was just a one off and now you don't want to leave the house with them...
Intelligent It's crazy to think just a year ago Abbie had been walking for just a month and babbled her way through the day, now she can name lots of shapes, the whole alphabet, she can count up to 28 and is starting to talk in sentences too!
Jealousy Abbie has always been the jealous type, if someone else hugs me or I try and have a cuddle with Ben on the sofa, she is over there pulling me up and screaming if I don't move, then she proceeds to jump on me and gives me a hug and a kiss!
Kisses The last week or so she has really been a big kissing monster, she will literally be playing a game on the floor then suddenly will shout 'a kiss, a kiss', walk up to us, pull our faces to hers and give kisses, it's adorable!
Love Love seems like such a little word to describe what you feel for your own child, there isn't any word that can fit it, your heart bursts with pride at everything they do, their little giggles, their sleeping faces, how cute they look in their little uggs and when they randomly come up to you and tell you they love you, makes everything worthwhile!
Mischief Yep, this is the age where they test boundaries, they do things they're not suppose to, and they know it too, Abbie gives it away usually by walking slowly up to the tv stand whilst looking around at us every 2 seconds to check if we're watching her, then proceeds to climb it as if we weren't going to notice! Oh and if she's put something in her mouth she knows she shouldn't, she'll go and hide in the corner of the room with her back to us, that's always a clue too!
No Ahhh the evil word no, do not use with a toddler unless you really have to, which is probably every day. We do try and use other words instead of it, as well as manners, so instead of No Abbie, we try; Please don't do that Abbie, it works so much better and you avoid those screaming tantrums, win win!
Over-reacting Sometimes it's like living with me when I was pregnant, little things become huge massive problems that cause tears, moving their toys, trying to brush their hair, and teeth for that matter, it can cause tantrums, stomping, screaming and even fake crying, you quickly learn whats a real cry and what's not!
Playtime Pretty much all day everyday, puzzles, drawing, painting, reading, trips to the park etc, keeping them occupied can be a challenge at times, especially if they're being grumpy but fresh air usually makes them feel better!
Quiet time Ahhh yes one of my favorite times of the day, whether they're quiet because of nap time or just because they're having some chill out time, even just 5 minutes can save your sanity!
Routine Abbie loves her routine, she knows exactly what's gonna happen and ends up really thrown off if it's out by 10 minutes!
Sleep It's SOOOO much better now, don't get me wrong though, Abbie is not a perfect sleeper and often wakes me up at least 3 times in the night still, but looking back to when she was 12 months and under, I can at least function now! And now she has all her teeth, no more teething pains, yay!
Tantrums And lots of them! Whether it's because they're not allowed something, can't pick something up or just because they feel like, it's like pregnancy hormones have taken control of your child! Under Literally Abbie will climb underneath everything and anything, if there's a tunnel, she's in it, if there's a 10cm gap she can crawl under, she's through it!
Vicks When your toddler has a cold, Vicks literaly are the biggest helper ever! From vapour rub to the amazing contraption of a plug in vapour, they've made Abbie's colds waaaay better in just one day! Yay for vicks!
Spelling square :)
Words One minute they're babbling at you, the next they're telling you what they want, where they want to go, singing nursery rhymes and coming out with sentences and words they've heard you say, which can always bring out the giggles, so adorable and innocent!
Xylophone And anything else that makes loud noises for that matter, they turn into musical geniuses! (and I couldn't think of anything else for X!...)
Zzzz Ok I struggled with what to write for Z so i'm mentioning sleep again as it is an important one!Toddlers DO sleep better, it doesn't mean perfectly, Abbie still wakes up most nights but she is settled quickly and still naps in the day for over an hour, everything is so much easier when they have a good sleep routine (for us anyway), after 20 months of no sleep, Abbie finally slept through the night, only for a few weeks, then started again when she turned 2, sleep really can make all the difference!
X
