The Conscious Parent

greed, they love us when they want something, whereas the next moment
it’s as if we didn’t exist.
Toddlerhood is a planet all its own. Nothing prepares us for the
onslaught of its wrath or the endearing confusion of its budding
independence. Reactions seemingly emerge out of nowhere, then either
disappear just as fast or linger on and on through lunch, playtime, and
dinner. The child who is perfectly angelic one minute can turn into a
raving lunatic the next. The sweet-tempered tot can become a finger-
biting terror in an instant.
The toddler isn’t just emotionally volatile, but often maddeningly
inconsolable. Though a toddler’s fears are primarily imagined, they are
perceived as so very real. A toddler has the most remarkable ability to
remember what it wants and to persist until its demands are met. Yet it
has the amazing ability to ignore the things in which it has no interest.
Just about everything in a toddler’s life is over-thetop—over-the-top
frustration and over-the-top excitement. Toddlerhood is a chaotic phase
of a child’s life both emotionally and physically. Messy, undefined,
disorderly, ever-changing, and unpredictable, there are no neat and tidy
answers here. No broom is wide enough to sweep away the dust, grit, and
grubbiness of toddlerhood. While this phase often feels impossible for
both parent and child, it’s truly magnificent to witness. This is the phase
in which the child’s sense of self begins to blossom, as it begins to
explore its creativity, curiosity, and independence. Toddlers are
spectacular, invincible in their fantasies, limitless in their potential.
They want to fly high in the sky, sail the seven seas, explore the world,
and stay awake until dawn. When a child begins to understand itself as a