Parenting Toddlers

Toddlers are notoriously picky, fussy, strange eaters. I know Peanut isn’t “fussy” per se. She eats a variety of foods - she eats raw Kale leaves straight from the garden. On the other hand, the kid likes TicTacs (provided by her grandfather!). She doesn’t always eat a balanced diet, though. She loves veggies, but that doesn’t mean she’s going to eat them when I serve them. It is impossible to know what she’ll eat at any given time, which makes meal times hard. Anyway, my point is that it is hard to know what your toddler is actually consuming as far as nutrients. Our pediatrician told us not to look at it day by day, but rather week by week. Is she getting enough vitamins and nutrients overall? Some days she may eat nothing but noodles (which are bleached out and usually covered in a weird orange cheese sauce. Yes, I do make her mac and cheese from a box!). Anyway, a tool that can really help you see what your child is eating is What My Toddler Ate Today by Jacqui Herrmann. This book is particularly important for parents who are concerned with their child’s weight - either that they gain too much or too little.

This book isn’t about telling us what to feed our children. You can find that information in a host of other places, like the FDA food pyramid or your doctor. Portion sizes are obviously different for toddlers also. Instead, this book functions has a log or food diary, a portion tracker, and/or a meal planner. You can track everything your child eats so you know if they are getting a balanced diet. You can take a look at the log sheets here. (Sorry, I was going to take pictures of the book but my camera wouldn’t cooperate.)

This is a great book for anyone who has a fussy eater, a light eater, an overeater, a grazer, a snacker, or any other type of eating behavior. I was able to see that, yes, my child is eating enough, and no, she is not in danger of malnutrition! It costs only $10.49 from Amazon, but I have a copy I’d like to give one of Parenting Toddlers readers. If you’d like a copy, email me a short entry about the type of eating behaviors your child has by next Friday. (You can email me by going to the contact me section on the right side of the page.) I’ll choose a winner and send you this book. Hopefully, you’ll then want to share your own review with us!

Our quest for Ozzie has ended. Randi, super internet shopper and queen of finding things online, has found Ozzie the Octopus Spout Covers. The funny thing is that she found it on a site I’d already searched. You can find Ozzie here. Thanks. Even if you weren’t looking for it, the Crayola store has a bunch of cool stuff - not just crayons anymore!
If your toddler is not a bath lover, Crayola makes a lot of products that are designed to make bathtime fun.
For all this good free advertising, Crayola should give me free stuff!! Anyway, they have a ton of fun things for your kids, and the prices aren’t too bad.

Too much fun. Can I use him for my baths too?

A reader left a comment on an old post about Ozzie the Octopus spout covers, which look like awesome additions to bathtime. Anyway, the reader wanted to know where to find them. I looked online and can’t find where to buy. I’ve seen a few blog posts, which again, say they are awesome bathtime additions! But as to where to buy them, I found nothing. They’re supposedly put out by Crayola but I couldn’t find them on the website. Does anyone have one? Where did you get it? This would be a cool product for a lot of our toddlers, so if you have any ideas where we can get them, please share. Thanks! Here’s what Ozzie looks like - he attaches to the spout in the bath and water comes out of his tentacles. Very cool.

We have a good case of potty mouth at our house lately. One day this week, Peanut and I were having lunch at a restaurant with her father. He was teasing her and wouldn’t give her her fortune cookie. She turned to him and said, “What an a**hole.” I nearly died. It was even funnier because she pronounces “hole” like “hull.” What an a**hull. I know laughing is the worst way to respond because she’ll just swear more. And she did. It’s totally our fault. The next day, I was experiencing some road rage, and said “What an a-hole.” She said, “Why are they a**hulls, Mommy?” I tried to explain that I shouldn’t have said that and that I was just irritated that someone had cut me off. She said, “I really hate those bitches.” Then she used the phrase “bitch head” for the rest of the day. Yes, she even requested some macaroni and cheese from her bitch head mother. Yesterday, she was in the garden with her father. He and a neighbor were talking about groundhogs ruining the garden. She asks him, “Are you going to shoot those little bastards.” I swear to God. This kid is a foul-mouthed little smarty!!
She’s been a bit better since then. I never realized how much she picks up though because she (besides this week) very rarely swears. I think she must have just been observing, gathering data, and waiting for a chance to use the words.
Mistake #1 was swearing so much in front of her. Mistake #2 was laughing like an idiot when she swore. But, honestly, it is the funniest thing because her voice is so sweet. It’s like hearing your little old grandmother swear. That’d be funny too.

If your toddler is testing her swearing limits, there are some things you can do to curb the language.

First, don’t laugh! It’s really, really, really hard. But don’t do it.
Second, watch your own language. Again, really hard.
Third, have her substitute foul language for other words, like “Sugar” or “Rats.” I actually have a thirty year old friend who still says “Rats.”
Fourth, you can try time outs if the language doesn’t improve. Again, you really should watch your own language so you don’t look like a hipocrit. Kids are very sensitive to that.
Fifth, just explain why you don’t want to hear that language. Even toddlers can understand certain words are not to be said, espeically in a Chinese restaurant.

I have a hard time taking this bad language seriously. It’s about testing her limits, and I don’t choose to make a huge deal of it. She’ll grow out of it with a little guidance. In the grand scheme of things, it doesn’t seem like a major problem. I know many people will disagree, but I feel confident that I can teach her acceptable social behavior! I’d much rather put up with a few swears than diapers…can

I was flipping through the whole ten channels I get the other night and stumbled on something on NBC. The Baby Borrowers. I had heard of it but hadn’t paid any attention whatsoever, so when I watched it, I was very surprised that real people - real, actual, live people - lent their babies to teenage couples. I have a hard time sharing the blankets with my fiance or the last bit of ice cream with, well, anyone. I can’t imagine sharing Peanut. So I had to continue to watch to see what would possess these normal-looking people to do this. And a teenager. My little sister is 15, and good luck getting her to change a diaper.

Anyway, the idea is that five teenage couples who think it would be really awesome and exciting to have a baby get to actually take care of one for a few days. They live in houses in this weird made-up suburbia or something, and there are cameras on them all the time so parents can go (the parents are in houses down the street) whenever they feel the need to. I got over the part about giving inexperienced teenagers real live children and moved on to making fun of the teenagers. Parents know that having a cute little bundle of joy is HARD!! It’s not like a celebrity baby accessory that you can give to a nanny. They cry, they spit up (one kid was AMAZING at spitting up!!), they poop, they cry some more.

I will give the teenagers a little slack. It is hard to get a six month old baby and have to take care of it. You don’t know the special tricks to getting him to sleep or soothing him. He hasn’t bonded with you. That being said, keep them away from my babies!! Most of them did ok, actually. One girl though about killed me. The baby she and her boyfriend were given was teething. Poor guy. She was trying to feed him and he’s crying and so sad. I have never seen a baby so sad in my life. He was in pain. She just keeps trying to jam the spoon in his mouth. They never once thought to pick him up, soothe him, rub his gums, or even talk to him. She finally said, “Whatever, starve then.” The mama was MAD at that and went over to talk to the girl. She told her that when you have a child, you don’t get to behave that way. You feed the child. No matter if it takes an hour - you feed the child. Understandable, and there was no hitting or yelling involved. The teenager took offense and refused to have anything else to do with the baby for the rest of the time. Her point was that her own baby wouldn’t be so hard. Ok, you’re own baby definately won’t teeth….what???? That made me mad! It also again reminded me that some people think having a baby will help make a relationship better. It is stressful - if I had to save my marriage, having a kid would not even be a consideration. Anyway, hopefully, these teenagers realize all this and don’t reproduce too young! (Not that there aren’t some very responsible, excellent teenage parents. But I’m sure they’d be the first to say how hard it is.)

Anyway, as the show progresses, the teenagers will have to care for toddlers, kids, teenagers, and elderly people. It is kind of interesting, and if you like to watch shows that make you talk back to the tv, this one is for you.

Happy Fourth of July everyone! (Everyone in the US anyway.) Is anyone planning on seeing some fireworks? The town I live in seems to celebrate July 4 two weeks later - on the 19th, there is going to be a parade, fairs, a dance, bands, and all that. Maybe we’ll see fireworks then. Who knows why they do this? Ah well. If you are, make sure you comfort your little toddlers. Big noises are scary to pretty much everyone, and especially so for little kids. Hold them while you watch and explain before hand that they’re going to be loud.

I hope everyone has a fun and safe holiday. What are your plans? Is anyone traveling?

Yesterday, I took Peanut to the beach to hang out and see her grandparents and aunt. You would think I never take this kid anywhere - she kept saying how excited she was! It was a lot of fun, though I have a good sunburn on my shoulders now. Since it’s summer, I’m sure many of you will be making similar trips. It’s so much fun, and since we went to a state park, it was pretty cheap. Here are some good things to keep in mind when you take your little one to the beach:

*SUNSCREEN!! You too, parents. You know how much it hurts to have a sunburn - imagine your kid with one. Ouch for both of you.

**Bring toys. We brought a few buckets and shovels and she was good for hours. I brought a book. If you have someone else to help you, can you at least read while your toddler plays in the sand for a loooong time.

***Bring your bathing suit. I’m pregnant and ENORMOUS, so the last thing I wanted to do was put on a bathing suit. Big mistake. Being in the water is so refreshing, and I know Peanut loves it when I play with her. Next time, I will definately wear it.

****Be preapred with swim diapers. The bathroom was a long way off, so instead of letting Peanut go without, we used a swim diaper. I still asked her periodically if she had to go, and since I’m pregnant, we made a few trips anyway.

*****Bring snacks. Peanut is a snacker. We had sandwiches for lunch, we she picked at. Throughout the afternoon, she would grap a bite. Food = less cranky.

******Speaking of cranky, nap time is not likely on beach days. Good luck trying to get your toddler to lie down for a snooze. I think you just have to forego the nap for the day and deal with a little crankiness afterward. Peanut was so tired she fell asleep in the car, which she has not been doing lately.

The beach is a good place to focus on just playing with your child. I didn’t have a cell phone, laptop, or work, so I could just enjoy being there. That can be hard to do at home when there are so many other distractions.

Have fun! Kids love the beach, and it’s pretty nice for adults too.

There was recently a problem with a 451 Press server, which caused a bunch of sites to be unavailable. And yes, of course, this one was one of them…my luck. I apologize and hope we still have some readers out there! I am taking Peanut to the beach to see her grandma - she keeps going around the house with her pail and shovel saying, “I’m so excigid.” So cute! It’s so easy to make her happy - though I wish the beach weren’t twenty miles away. That’s how it is living in a rural area. You unfortunately have to drive to get anywhere. Anyway, though, I’m trying to be “excigid” too! Anyway, I’ll be back this afternoon with new posts - at least the break re-energized me for writing! Again, sorry for the inconvenience, and I hope nothing else goes wrong with the servers.

There was recently a problem with a 451 Press server, which caused a bunch of sites to be unavailable. And yes, of course, this one was one of them…my luck. I apologize and hope we still have some readers out there! I am taking Peanut to the beach to see her grandma - she keeps going around the house with her pale and shovel saying, “I’m so excigid.” So cute! It’s so easy to make her happy - though I wish the beach weren’t twenty miles away. That’s how it is living in a rural area. You unfortunately have to drive to get anywhere. Anyway, though, I’m trying to be “excigid” too! Anyway, I’ll be back this afternoon with new posts - at least the break re-energized me for writing! Again, sorry for the inconvenience, and I hope nothing else goes wrong with the servers.