1. You will end up knowing the words to shows such as In the Night Garden and Fireman Sam off by heart and will probably start singing them to yourself even when your little one is nowhere in sight.
2. Mummies to little boys, you may have survived up until now without being peed on but there is an even higher risk once your toddler decides they want to start using a potty....
3. Those toys you used to wish your baby would play with back when a cardboard box was more interesting? You will be harbouring secret plans to find and destroy each and every one of them if you hear one more chorus of "1,2,3,4,5 all aboard the counting train" at half six in the morning.
4. Bathtime is fun. Getting out of the bath time not so much....
5. Remember watching that advert on TV with the woman getting on the floor and banging her fists and screaming to stop her little boy from having his tantrum in the supermarket? Remember thinking to yourself, who in their right mind would actually resort to that? Yeah, that could be you soon. Believe me, when it happens, all rational thoughts go out of the window and you just want the screaming to stop right away!
6. Gone are the days you could shove a whole sharing size bar of Dairy Milk in your mouth when you were having a bad day. The eating of chocolate, or indeed any 'bad' food, must be carried out like a military operation. Your child is playing happily with a toy? Go, go, gooooo!! Believe me, if they catch you eating it, they will want it, a lot more than those healthy raisins in their hand.
7. Be prepared for your adorable baby to suddenly change into the child from the omen complete with evil eyes and strops that definitely resemble a demonic possession. They may hit, bite, punch, slap and headbutt you to within an inch of your life, but trust me, they love you really.
8. The rivalry between mums you may have come across when your baby was younger will still be there with statement such as "My little one has been sleeping through the night since they were only a few days old", "I don't ever resort to using calpol/bonjela/cough mixture on MY child" and "We only eat all organic, freshly sourced foods in our house" being the weapons of choice. Who cares if you aren't 'doing it by the book'?! Every child is different and you always know best.
9. If you were lucky enough to have a routine from an early age, this could all be disrupted by something as minor as a cough, cold or yet another tooth coming through. Bigger changes such as moving house could mean having to start from the beginning again.
10. Don't spend too much time comparing those children the same age as your own especially when looking at developmental milestones such as walking, talking and potty training. Every child is unique and will get to these milestones at a different point. Cameron didn't walk until he was 11 months old and I was all set for calling up the health visitor as I walked at 9 months and thought he was unable to do it!
No matter how many hard times there are raising a toddler, I wouldn't change Cameron for the world.
Every day he amazes me. I love him so much!
This is all SO true! Don't you just love how toddlers start the day as one child and by the end of the day seem to have called on every possible element of their personality-I sometimes think I've looked after different children all day thanks to his mood swings!x
ReplyDeleteToddlers are the worst! I'm not a mom but I am a nanny and have been one for almost ten years. They are my absolute least favorite age to have.
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