The vitamin D can come from vitamin D-enriched milk (cow, goat, almond, soy, pea, etc).
If your child is drinking whole milk, consider switching to 2%
16 ounces per day of whole cow’s milk provides the required vitamin D your child needs.
If your child won’t take all 16 ounces of milk per day from the sippy cup, don’t reintroduce the bottle.
Instead, just give a vitamin D supplement that evening before bed.
Limit milk to 20 ounces per day. Drinking more than 20 ounces per day will negatively affect your child’s appetite, which can cause nutritional deficiencies.
Receiving too much cow’s milk per day is a known cause of anemia.
The milk should be given in a sippy cup.
The milk should be given throughout the day with meals and snacks, just like big kids and adults drink it.
Your child does not need juice, unless it's being used to treat constipation.
If you do give your child juice, serve all-natural 100% fruit juice
Water
Offer your child water freely throughout the day.
Don’t worry if they don’t want to drink, this simply means they aren’t thirsty.
Please note that the amount of water needed daily may vary by individual and may need to be adjusted depending on levels of activity and environmental conditions like heat and humidity.
Mealtime
We recommend 3 meals and 1-2 snacks per day.
Avoid letting your child “graze” on food throughout the day.
This will negatively affect the appetite and can worry parents that their child “doesn’t eat enough” at mealtimes.
Eat meals together as a family when possible.
Avoid distractions during mealtimes, which many parents use to get their child to eat more.
We want your child to pay attention to their own hunger level, rather than eating out of distraction.
Common distractions to avoid: TV, screens (phone/iPad), pets, music.
The most common distraction is often the caregivers themselves.
Imagine how distracting it would be to have Mom on one side and Dad on the other, both trying to convince you to eat more!
Instead, we recommend caregivers eat their own meals and converse with each other, allowing your child to pay attention to their own hunger level, and eat accordingly.
If your child cleans their plate, offer more!
Provided there are no distractions, you can trust your child to eat when hungry, and stop when full.
Avoid small, hard foods that can cause choking—nuts, popcorn, hot dogs, grapes, and hard, raw veggies.
Strategies For Picky Eaters
Most caregivers will experience concerns about picky eating between 12 and 36 months of life.
By 2 years of age, your child should be walking well, running, and able to jump with two feet
By 2 1/2 years of age your child should be running well without falling
Your child should be able to climb stairs while holding onto the railing
Your child is likely able to climb on and off furniture or other objects
Your child can also stand on tiptoe, kick a ball and pull toys behind them or carry toys while walking
Your child can take off some clothes independently
Fine Motor Skills
Your child should be able to feed themselves with a spoon and fork, but it is still very normal for them to use their hands at times
Continue to allow your child to feed themselves at mealtimes, even if it means a bigger mess.
Your child can scribble. you may start to see them use one hand more often than the other
Your child can stack blocks or other small toys
Language Skills
At 2 years old, your child should be talking in short sentences of at least 2 words
Your child should say at least 50 words
Language should be 50% understandable to strangers
Your child will be able to point to objects or pictures when named out loud, and recognize names of familiar people/objects/body parts
Talk to your child all the time.
They should hear as many words as possible from the people she cares about.
This is best accomplished through interactive play with caregivers.
Reading books is always encouraged, but most toddlers will lose interest quickly, and that’s ok too!
You don't need to stick to the words, try pointing to the pictures and asking them what they see!
Avoid “baby talk.”
Instead, pronounce words correctly, to teach your child to make sounds correctly.
Social/Emotional Skills
Around 2 years of age, your child will begin to imitate the behavior of other children and adults, and will be eager to play alongside of other children.
Children at this age strive for independence yet often feel anxious and clingy in new situations and may fear separation from caregivers. This typically improves when approaching 30 months
As your child gets closer to 2 1/2
Your child will engage in pretend play (feed a baby doll)
Your child will try to engage you in play "look at me!"
Your child will follow simple routines/ instructions "it's clean up time," "it's time to put on shoes"
Your child may become more opinionated ("NO!")
offer firm but gentle boundaries (try not to go back on what you say)
give choices when possible. It is best to limit options to two choices.
Teething may continue to bother your child on and off until they get their second set of molars
Safety
Keep your child’s car safety seat rear-facing until your child is 2 years of age or until they reach the highest weight or height allowed by the car safety seat’s manufacturer.
