Your baby is now 2 years old. At this age, they become highly active. As a mum, you need to understand how you can help them explore and learn by doing various activities. Don’t block them!
Their little legs have now grown strong
Your little one who stumbled and depended on your helping hand now walks like a pro! They might also love to climb stairs! Mum, you should watch over them since this is a skill they are learning anew.
No telling when they might slip, so stay close. Hope the stairways have handrails? If not, this poses a much higher risk. Your little one also loves climbing chairs and windows. It’s impossible to stop them from doing all of this. This is part of their growth. So best you give them guidelines and try and create a safe environment.
Active fingers!
Their hands and fingers never get a rest. If they see a scissor they will cut. If they get hold of a paper, they will tear it. They will not even understand the value of a book. So, don’t scold them if they tear one up. Maybe you can try to teach them gently and lovingly how to differentiate paper from books (for the sake of all your other books!)
Crayons in their hands can mean lots of scribbling everywhere! Don’t be dismayed. Your children are learning to express themselves. Who knows you might be the mum of the next great Picasso!
Now your child should also be able to button and unbutton by themselves. Zip and unzip and even open and shut a lid. Watching them do so you will be able to identify if they are either left or right-handed. Don’t worry about their dominant hand or try to change it. Whichever hand they feel comfortable, let them use it.
Extremely Curious
At this age, they will grab hold of anything, however suspicious it might look! They want to touch it, observe it. Squish it and even taste it! Why you ask? The answers simple. They are just curious! This curiosity makes them vulnerable to accidents. So you need to be careful. They might just pull a kettle full of boiling water or poke their finger into a plug point or even get their head stuck somewhere! All these can cause great harm, so you need to be on alert. Even though you might say don’t do it, they might not understand and try to do it anyway. They are still learning to control their impulses.
So many requests, so many conditions!
Feeding them is no longer simple. You can’t just show a crow and trick them to open their mouth. They are also learning communication. “Give me that”, “I want that”, “i don’t want that” are all little phrases they have learnt to tell you what they want. They might even throw a bit of a tantrum (crying or banging their hands) if they don’t get it. Distracting them into eating is no longer possible. They will flatly refuse anything they do not like. Their tongues recognize tastes and have their preferences.
Their mouths now have 20 teeth!
Their mouth will now have close to twenty teeth. So, they can eat any food without any issues. As parents, we can’t yet give them free rein regarding what they eat. You will have to watch over and direct them. Because though they can chew any meal, they might not be able to handle fruits such as ‘rambutan’ because of their seeds. They are susceptible to getting choked. So, stay alert.
They love to imitate
Your little one’s entire world is their home. They love to observe what happens at home and imitate. Your little girl might try to drape a saree just like you. Put on lipstick. Your little boy might try on a tie like their father. This is normal behavior. As their bodies and minds grow, they learn a lot through observing and imitating you.
Recognizing shapes and colors
They might not yet be able to say what the exact color or shape is. But they will be able to group similar shapes and colors.
They know what belongs to them
Your little one knows exactly what belongs to them. If they have a sibling, they will also distinguish what belongs to whom. Anything he likes “belong to baby”. Mum and dad “belong to baby.”
Creativity
Your child is now advanced enough to take a few building blocks and place them on top of each other to build a simple structure. They can even place a few Jigsaw pieces together. Of course, for the first few times, you will have to show them how it’s done. After that, they will love to do it on their own and feel independent.
They love playing
They will love to have a swing in the garden to play all day if possible. Don’t let them do it on their own though. You need to watch over. Have you tried playing hide and seek with them? You should. They might even try to hide when you’re trying to feed them!
It’s so wondrous to watch how our little ones grow up. The thoughts and dreams they have are so innocent and beautiful. This age, they are taking baby steps towards independence by learning to communicate what they need, walk by themselves, select their own clothes. They are developing both physically and mentally. This means they will get better at dealing and communicating with those around them. This will give you a bit of breathing space now. But stay alert because there are many things about their surroundings they are yet to grasp and need mum and dad’s discernment and watchful eyes.
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