Want your toddler to wash hands after using the potty? Here's how — along with options for toddler hand soap. This content contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a commission if you make a purchase using these links. Here's a stat straight from the CDC that may burst your hygiene bubble: Handwashing with soap could protect about 1 out of every 3 young children who get sick with diarrhea. K, I really did blurt out the word diarrhea to kick this off. Cue flashback to kids belting out the Diarrhea Song in the back of Steve Martin's van in Parenthood. So yes, it's important to wash hand ..read more

Inside: Gifts for little kids, gifts for big kids, and gifts for the whole family based on what we use and love and have given as gifts, too. This content contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a commission if you make a purchase using these links. This is not your typical gift guide. And I'm aware of what a gift guide typically looks like (as I worked on producing gift guides for a decade as an editor for Real Simple and Redbook magazines.) The super-sized roundups of products that are the newest, latest, shiniest of wish-you-could-have-its for every person in your life. This is not ..read more

The do's and don'ts, and tips for making a toddler bed when you're night time potty training. This content contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a commission if you make a purchase using these links. You’ve probably heard a coach frame something the right and the wrong way. Could be a business coach, a fitness coach, or even your son’s soccer coach on the right and wrong way to kick the ball. I’m not going to pull out my coach voice and call out: you may be making your toddler’s bed wrong for naptime and night training. Nope, not gonna say that. Because it’s not a black-and-white s ..read more

Wondering what to make for breakfast for a constipated toddler? Make a batch of granola loaded with fats for seeing potty training poop wins! This content contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a commission if you make a purchase using these links. This past weekend, I watched not one, not two, but three tournament soccer games for my son's team — two of them under the cover of my beach chair's sunshade as it was a mix of misty, cool, rainy weather all weekend long here in Maine. And besides seeing my son's team squeak out a turnaround win in the last two minutes of one of the games ..read more

Here's how to make prepping meals easier on you with a Montessori kitchen setup (and mindset of what can your child do to help) This content contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a commission if you make a purchase using these links. When it's time to make dinner, there is a specific refrain that can be heard in many homes with toddlers. It sounds something like... I just need 10 minutes, okay? YOU stay here with this — see how fun? I'll be right there, buddy! Okay, I'll hold you for a minute while I stir this, but then you go play. Scarcity of time is a real struggle when you're tr ..read more

Try this toddler constipation smoothie that tastes like pumpkin pie, with coconut milk that's a boost to help your child poop easier. This content contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a commission if you make a purchase using these links. While I may not jump to pumpkin spice everything at the start of fall, I do love adding a little bit of pumpkin to the mix. Pumpkin pie is my favorite pie, so I wanted to capture that flavor in this coconut constipation smoothie to help potty training toddlers. As a ,potty training consultant, I've noticed the early autumn season is also a common ..read more

Prepping for the preschool transition? Here's a simple list to help potty training toddlers transition to preschool or daycare. This content contains affiliate links. If I had to focus on one takeaway for helping toddlers adjust to preschool, it would be this... The magic is in the transitions. Meaning how you prepare your child can set them up for an easier preschool transition, especially diaper-free. The small stuff matters. I love a good list, especially for anything school-related. So here's a few essentials to have in place for the preschool transition — simple ideas that I've seen help ..read more

At what age do you start potty training in the day or night? This content contains affiliate links. The way potty training stories circle a playground or parents' group, you'd think there is for sure some magic to the timing of it. I waited until she was this age and it just took a weekend! No pull-ups at night? That won't work until your child is older. I think they grow into being able to hold their pee overnight. Turning a year older and all the milestones that come with each year — when your child is two, three, four — brings lots of changes. Is there some magic to timing potty training at ..read more

Coping with a toddler and newborn plus a book list of new sibling books for toddlers. I still remember sitting in my midwife's office, pregnant with my second child and feeling a complete sense of overwhelm through the nausea. She saw the doubt that shows up for us chronic over-thinkers and shared the advice my heart needed to hear. You are giving your daughter the greatest gift..a sibling. Those words stuck with me. But it probably took until my son was a young toddler for me to really feel what she meant. Over the years, witnessing the connection my two kids have with each other has been one ..read more

Inside: Gifts for little kids, gifts for big kids, and gifts for the whole family based on what we use and love and have given as gifts, too. This post contains affiliate links. This is a not a normal gift guide. And I'm aware of what a gift guide should look like (as I worked on producing gift guides for a decade as an editor for Real Simple and Redbook magazines.) The gift guides we all know are roundups of products that are the newest, latest, shiniest of wish-you-could-have-its for every person in your life. This is not that kind of a gift guide. When there's so much uncertainty (and 2020 ..read more