Toddler Week 13

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Traveling With A Toddler

The word ‘holiday’ does not carry the same meaning for a young child as it does for you. You have visions of relaxing on a beach or visiting lots of interesting shops, whereas your toddler may view a ‘holiday’, at least initially, as a disruption to his or her routine. Toddlers are not yet capable of understanding that such changes in scenery are not permanent. In fact, they believe everything to the contrary. There are, however, certain things you can do to make this transition easier for them:

  • Take a security object with you. Choose one or two favorite toys and a special pillow and blanket with you to provide your toddler with continuity while you are away from home.
  • View the world from your toddler’s perspective. Imagine how you would feel if you didn’t know if you would ever go home again. Make sure you soothe your toddler’s fears away in a gentle way.
  • Keep blood sugar levels even. Make sure that your toddler has regular snacks during the journey. A hungry or thirsty toddler is grumpy even at home, so you can imagine how he or she could be when you’re in transit.
  • Try to synchronize your toddler’s nap times with travel time. If it is at all possible, try to complete the longest part of the journey while your toddler is asleep.
  • Be considerate of others but don’t allow the attitudes of fellow passengers to force you to be harsh with your child if they are showing signs of discomfort. All too often, toddlers start crying in transit once they realize they are in strange surroundings. There are one too many instances too that parents act harshly towards their children to make them stop, thinking that other passengers are bothered by this behavior. However, as children are incapable of processing the situation that way, chances are they will react even worse to your harsh actions. Always be gentle and firm instead.
  • Be prepared. Have a bag of tricks ready to distract your toddler with. You can try a new age-appropriate application on your cell phone or tablet or take a small stash of interesting toys like a new lift-the-flap book or a toy phone with you.                                                                                                                                                                                              

Once you have arrived at your destination and your toddler starts to realize that being on ‘holiday’ means he or she will have your undivided attention, his or her behavior will most probably improve and you can then focus on enjoying your time together.

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