The Toddler: 18 months to 3 years

For months you have been saying, “I can’t wait until my baby can walk.”
“I can’t wait until my baby can talk.” And suddenly—your baby can!
Suddenly, your baby is a toddler—a walking, talking, jumping,
gi’abbing, pot-bellied, knock-kneed toddler, who always seems to have a
runny nose. What a difference from the baby you brought home from the
hospital! Now the toddler stands, and has a new outlook. How sure, how
cocky, how independent! Every object seen is a new challenge. And yet,
the toddler is still very dependent on you— for love, for physical
needs, for the setting of limits on aggressive behavior, for praise when
it is earned. The toddler is a paradox, loudly proclaiming independence
one minute; then seeking to be hugged and cuddled the next.

By Lendon H. Smith, M.D., Diane Shaffer, M.Ed., and Steven Waskerwitz,
M.D., Consulting Editors