The Happiest Baby on the Block and The Happiest Toddler on the Block 2-Book Bundle pdfdrive com

Listen with Respect.
When you listen to your child with patience
and respect, you send him the message that you really value him as a
person.
Ask for Help: “Can You Carry This for Daddy?”
Asking your
tot for help tells him, I know you can do it. He’ll beam with pride when
he shows you how capable he is. For example, say, “Honey, my hands
are sooo full, can you please help Mommy and carry my purse?”
Offer Options: “Which Ones Should We Get?”
There are so
many decisions to make every day; let your child make a couple of them.
One-year-olds aren’t great decision-makers. But by two, your tot will
love being asked to choose: “Which flowers should we buy, the pink or
the yellow?”
Asking your child his opinion shows him that you think he’s smart and
you have confidence in his choices.
Two big rules about choices:

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• Don’t offer too many options. Your toddler’s immature brain
may get overloaded with too many choices. “Do you want milk
in the red cup, yellow cup, green cup, or purple cup?” Thirty-
nine flavors of ice cream? Tilt! Tilt!
• Never ask your child’s choice if you plan to disregard it. For
example, don’t ask him which flowers to get if you’ve already
decided to buy the pink ones no matter what.
Let Him Work It Out: “You Can Do It!”
It may take your
toddler five minutes to do something you can do in five seconds, but
don’t rush him! Put your hands in your pockets, zip your lips, take some
slow, deep breaths, and encourage his efforts. (“Wow! You’re really
trying hard!” “Good job, you’ve almost got it!”) If you can refrain from
hovering and jumping in, your patience and body language will give
your little one the message I trust you to figure out even tough things.
Let him work at it, even if he gets a little frustrated. Of course, offer
some help if he’s really getting upset.
Building Confidence: Playing the Boob
We all pretend to be klutzes sometimes when we are playing with our
kids. It makes them laugh, feel clever and strong (by comparison to their
inept parent), and makes them want to be more cooperative.
Sound odd? Embarrassing? Unnatural? Well, actually it’s a silly idea
that’s supersmart and I bet you’re doing it already! Do you ever:

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• Pretend you’re startled when your child roars like a tiger?
• Have a little race and intentionally lose?
• Have a pillow fight and let your tot topple you with each swipe?
If you answered yes to any of those, then you’re already playing the
boob (and, you know how much your child loves it)! Playing the boob
makes kids feel like winners—and that helps them give in faster on
issues that we care about!