eXtreme eXcitement

Plan and enjoy moments of excitement for your toddlers.

Our teens still fondly recall the 'midnight' snacks which involved a 30 cents icecream drive-thru (only ten minutes after they had been put to bed) but quite dark in winter!

The inside picnics for dinner on the lounge room floor was also a highlight.

Most exciting of all was being allowed to sleep in their makeshift tent of blankets and sheets in the lounge room, with dad for safety!

Treasure hunts (with pictures as clues) to find a gift, sock wars, trains, tea parties, obstacle courses for ride-ons or prams and new arts and crafts are so special to your toddler.

Excitement and fun that is long remembered and cherished.

Nightly Nightmares

The first thing to look at is your daily schedule. Do you have a balanced, flexible routine that includes focus time with mum and independent play opportunities? Is the toddler receiving adequate naps and healthy meals and snacks? Is the daily environment peaceful and calm or noisy and disorderly?

Next look at possible sources of fear.Books, TV, movies, unexplained situations, words or actions of older sibling, children or even adults that can be misconstrued.

Role play how your child could respond to their fear. We would give our toddler something to do (eg turn on a night light or have a sip of water), something to say (eg one siple phrase or one sentence prayer) and something to think ( a new dream about butterflies and flowers or bears and trucks.

This will help you nip this issue in the bud before it develops into a sleep problem. More importantly you are giving your precious little one the skills and self-control to hande their fears.