Toddler This Week: 18 Months, Week 2

Is your child a little ray of sunshine at daycare but a thundercloud when you show up on the scene? Try not to get upset by these end-of-day meltdowns. They're signs of true love: Your toddler knows that it's safe to let out all of his pent-up feelings around you. While you may be tempted to run a few errands on your way back to the house, you should probably opt to put those tasks on hold until your child is more at ease. It's a decision that could make your evening a lot more enjoyable.

Now that your child is walking and talking, you can also expect him to be more interested in establishing relationships with other people, especially children his age. But though he wants to interact with peers, he still regards them more as curiosities than as playmates. If your child pushes, pokes, or hits his playmates, don't worry that he's anti-social, just be patient and willing to expose him to a variety of situations — the more chances your toddler has to interact in group settings, the sooner he'll develop social skills.

Try to connect with parents of two or three other children who are about the same age as yours and make plans to meet on a regular basis. Fun outings at this age include trips to "hands-on" children's museums, playgrounds, petting zoos, or anywhere your toddlers can run around freely. Just remember that for at least the next few months, even when your 18-month-old does have playdates, he's more likely to engage in "parallel" play than to play cooperatively with his friends.

An 18-month-old's top priority is to succeed at various tasks. So he constantly tests himself — and you. His failure to succeed, either because he's incapable of, say, putting on his own shoes, or because you stop him — as when you forbid him from climbing onto a chair near the stove so he can help you — is frustrating for him. This is a phase when "no" seems to be the word that you both use more than any other.

As his confidence in his own abilities increases, so does his willfulness. Your job is to gauge when you must prevent him from trying to reach a goal — for instance, because it's not safe for him to be near a hot stove — and when you should let him go ahead and try. So what if it takes you a few extra minutes in the morning while he tries to put on his sneakers? Discouraging him from trying many of the things he attempts will only make him unwilling to try new things in the future.

If you and your spouse both work outside the home, your toddler is probably used to saying goodbye to you in the morning: He rarely protests your departure the way he did a few months ago. But when you arrive to pick him up at the end of the day, you may be greeted with a screaming "throw-down" tantrum. On the other hand, this age begins a phase when many toddlers begin to behave in both cooperative and caring ways.

-BabyCenter.com