what is the best play mat?

we have decided what to get the family of little boys we are getting christmas gifts for.

the main thing we are looking for is a play mat that can be used throughout the toddler years for the newborn (first they lay on their back and pull the toys, then stomach, then sit, then use it for cruising). what is a good one that is decently priced?

also we are looking for riding toys for the bigger kids. what riding toys would be appropriate for the 11 month old and 2 1/2 year old? we want to get them one each that would fit their developmental stage.
we are going to toys r us.. i just want to know what would be some good models to look at for each child.

My almost-12 month old won’t/can’t eat “table/toddler” food. His dr. isn’t concerned. So why am I?

My son isn’t excited about eating solids really at all. Occasionally when we are in a restaurant, he will want something to occupy himself with (foodwise), but it seems he would be content to simply breastfeed almost exclusively yet. We seat him at the family table and we all eat dinner together (me, husband, and him), and I usually eat breakfast with him as well– and by this, I mean whatever little he will eat. I don’t want to force food on him or start a power struggle, but he just doesn’t seem to want anything. What little food he does take is smooth puree– seems to hate the 3rd stage foods, so we don’t really go that route anymore. And I have tasted everything I feed him– it’s not as if I’m trying to make him eat something really gross. We offer little bits of our (appropriate) food, and he just thinks it is for mushing, messing, and throwing off the highchair to the dog. If something makes it into his mouth and it doesn’t totally dissolve (like steamed peas or rice), he gags frequently. He has 5 teeth.

I know I shouldn’t be comparing my kid to others, but my friends with same-age babies are eating whole grean beans, string cheese, and even PB&J sandwiches! My son just wants the boob. I’ve talked to the dr. about this, and she doesn’t seem to think it’s a big problem, as he will self-feed from time to time (puffs, graham goldfish, yogurt melts). He also uses a sippy cup for the occasional expressed breastmilk feeding when I’m not around, and a straw cup for water, and hitting all of his other developmental milestones (took first steps last week). He is approx. 50th percentile for both height and weight, so he’s obviously growing just fine. I am trying to live by the “food is for fun until age one” mantra, but his birthday is next week, and he still has no real desire to eat “real food.” So what can I do to just get over myself or perhaps make my son more interested in solids? He has his 12 month check-up at the end of this month and I plan to discuss this again with his pediatrician.

not going to sleep like he use to?

my son is 15 months and at 10 months i started to put him in bed awake and after four days he went to sleep within 10 mins of just fussing. and from then until know he has done just that, but just recently he has started to cry and scream again when i put him down.

what can the reason be , medical , developmental or just because hes getting to that stage of toddler hood?

Is it just my imagination, or were toddlers from previous generations better behaved in public places…?

…than today’s?

I see meltdowns, temper tantrums, and all sorts of bad behaviour that I think parents seemed to have a better handle on 20 years ago.
Mr. Warrior: Not sure what brought on that outburst, this is the first time I’ve ever commented on the subject and anyway, why are you trying to get me to deny what I’m seeing with my own eyes?

i feel bisexual because my man acts like a bytch?

so yeah when he gets mad he starts yelling in public having a temper tantrum (hes 26). today at ikea he started yelling infront of toddlers “i want the world to know your a by tch everybody this girls a bytch” and he kept shouting:”whore” and our 3 year old was with us can i safely classify him as psycho the fight started over a disagreement about dry erase markers.

then he starts calling me bipolar on the way home he acted like nothing happened. what should i do should i have my brother kick his az z?
lady of forest i know i have issues thanks for not answering the question

2 year old wont sleep alone, going crazy, please help!!!!!!!?

My daughter was the perfect sleeper since she was born…until a week ago. All of a sudden she refuses to sleep alone. I got her a toddler bed, so she now has her crib and her bed, and that didn’t help. She just doesn’t want to sleep alone. Ive been sleeping on the floor next to her crib and holding her hand till she falls asleep and than I leave but in a couple hours she wakes up freaking out.
She’s also been acting out a lot lately with temper tantrums, she has at least 3 a day.

I’ve really had enough with this and I just don’t know what to do anymore…I really need help =(

Please, any and all suggestions are welcome, I just want her back to normal…I dont even want to take her out in public anymore cuz she’s constantly having these tantrums and nothing works to make her stop unless she gets her way…plz help!!!!!!
She also wont take her afternoon nap anymore…

great to answer?

Information on how children are doing at different periods of their lives are presented here and monitored on Kids Stats.

under 1 year (Infants)
1-4 years (Toddlers)
5-9 years (Early Childhood)
10-14 years (Middle Childhood)
15-17 years (Adolescence)

The age periods were chosen to reflect a developmental stage. In presenting information within these groups we recognise that while all children go through the same stages, they do so at their own speed. if yo udont belive me go to the following web http://www.kids.nsw.gov.au/kids/kidsstat… .
do you agree. if so write why.

22 month old sleep habits changing?

My son is 22 months old and has always been a good sleeper. Up until recently we would put him down between 6:30-7PM and he would wake up between 6-7AM, along with taking one 2 hour nap in the afternoon. Well, for the past week his sleep habits have been changing. He has been going to bed later and later every night (last night it was 9) and waking up as early as 4AM wide awake! His naps are more like an hour now which isn’t as big of a deal to me as long as he takes a nap, but the other day he only slept for a half hour.

All of this is just so unlike him I am wondering if he is going through some sort of developmental stage. I remember his sleep patterns changing slightly when he would go through a big change like crawling and walking. His eating habits have changed in the past week or so too. He used to eat everything and now he’s really picky and isn’t eating nearly as much throughout the day. We switched him over to a toddler bed a few weeks ago and from the first time we put him in there he’s been fine with it. Last night when we put him down at 8 and he screamed and cried for me for a half hour. I finally went in there and laid with him until he fell asleep which is a habit I do not want to get into!!

Has anyone else went through something similar with their toddler? Any advice? THANK YOU!!

look what i found?

look what i found

Information on how children are doing at different periods of their lives are presented here and monitored on Kids Stats.

under 1 year (Infants)
1-4 years (Toddlers)
5-9 years (Early Childhood)
10-14 years (Middle Childhood)
15-17 years (Adolescence)
The age periods were chosen to reflect a developmental stage. In presenting information within these groups we recognise that while all children go through the same stages, they do so at their own speed. if yo udont belive me go to the following webhttp://www.kids.nsw.gov.au/kids/kidsstats/agegroups/middlechildhood.cfm . do you agree.

Erikson’s developmental stages QUESTIONS for Interview?

I have to interview 4 people who are: Birth/toddler (0-4 years), School ages (4-12years), Adolescence (12-18years), and Adulthood (22-60years old). I have to ask the same questions to each group, so they have to be as simple as possible …and I’m stumped….I only have “List 3 things that are most important to you.” Any ideas? It’s difficult because I have to ask small children… =S

what are the five developmental stages?

and give five examples that show these types of development in infants, toddlers and preschoolers

What could be causing my toddler not to sleep anymore at night? ?

My 2 year old son has begun waking up a few times a night. I’m talking 1a.m. until 2a.m. then 3 to 4 then up for the day at 8. This is highly unusual. He usually goes to bed at 7 and sleeps through 9 in the morning. I’ve tried changing his nap routine. I’ve had him on a schedule with dinner, bath, bed, book every night. Nothing in his schedule changed before he started waking up. He was born prematurely and is behind on many developmental stages. I wasn’t sure if that would play a role in his sleeping habits. I’m just losing too much sleep with having to be at work at 6:30 every morning! Any advice would be greatly appreciated!!! Oh, he also hasn’t gone through any big changes lately other than the holidays, so that’s why I’m not understanding where this is coming from. Please Help!!!! Thanks in advance!!