What My Toddlers Taught Me

Toddlers are bubbling with energy and curiosity. It is infectious if you let yourself get swept up in the whirlwind of it. Whirlwind, doen't that perfectly describe toddlers?!?

They have a way of grabbing onto life and living it fully! It is a fascinating stage of development. One of my favourites.
How many favourite stages am I allowed??

I loved parenting the toddler years. Don't get me wrong, it was exhausting, overwhelming and loaded with fears that I was doing it all wrong and scarring my precious littles. I was able to enjoy it in spite of the chaos that exists. Who thought it was a good idea that humans this small should have their own ideas??? It is what makes them fun though!

Here is a little of what I learned from my toddlers:


1. Live in the moment. We have fancy words like mindfulness now. No matter what you call it, enjoy where you are, who you are with and what you are doing. If you have forgotten how, hang out with a toddler for a while.

2. Believe the best about others. If you know a toddler, they are usually quick to label someone a friend or nice. I love that they default to believe the best about others. It is beautiful. If evidence arises to contradict this is presupposition it is reevaluated. Otherwise, this is the assumption they operate under, not a bad way to take on the world!



3. Embrace curiosity! This is one of my favourite traits of toddlers, everything is a mystery to be discovered. Feed your mind, keep learning and discovering!

4. Take time to enjoy the wonder of it all. It doesn't matter if there is a schedule or if there is some- where to be, if something wondrous is discovered or experienced, a toddler always has time to enjoy it. Fully!!

5. Smile and move along! It doesn't matter if they fall and smack their face or spill something all over themselves. If you smile, they smile back, pick themselves up and keep going. When does that change? Why do we have to relearn how to move on from a mistake or a bump?

6. Keep moving until someone puts you to bed or you fall asleep spontaneously. Those little legs and hands never stop moving, they are busy, busy, busy. They don't need to train to do a marathon, everyday is a marathon!

7. Be friendly. I love how toddlers are enthusiastic to greet people. I love it when I am grocery shopping and a little one says hello to me. Why do we stop saying hello to people?

8. Play! It really is a great stress reliever! It doesn't have to be fancy, the kitchen pots and pans will do :)

9. Stand up for yourself. Okay, we probably don't want to scream when someone takes something of ours or hit the offender. Consider this though, it is rare that a toddler will accept injustice.  It is alright to respectfully let it be known that we do not appreciate being treated unfairly or poorly.

10. Faith. Our children believed God could move mountains, heal the sick, be their protector and defender. It was simple to them and they believed passionately.  As they have grown they have had to intellectually explore. They have tested truth and deepened their faith. They still believe God can move mountains and heal the sick, but at some point we all struggle. We are afraid to ask God in case he says "no" or "not yet". Toddlers get that answer and it doesn't shake their faith.  At some point we have to continued to hold onto that first initial step of faith. Believe.