Do you always do what your toddler wants to do?

Happy Momm

My 2yr old is whining to go outside. It's still early here and cold out so I don't want to go out right now...but we always go out in the afternoon. Or sometimes he wants to play Elmo games on my laptop, but I don't want him to because he's being too rough w it. My question is do you just try to keep your child happy or do you say no when you don't feel like letting them do something?
Darkangel- your reasoning sounds like since Ive let him use the laptop before he should always be able to. Not true. If he's playing nicely with it, yes, if he's being rough, no, he can't have it.

Answer
If I did, he would never wear clothes. He would always be either outside playing "awesome" (pushing a riding toy up an inclined driveway at an empty house and riding down the hill) or he would be eating cookies. My older children would constantly be wearing princess dresses and bad makeup, occasionally coming outside to ride bikes.

Being a mom means balancing everyone's needs. Don't forget to balance your own needs too! If you can't deal with going outside now, then put in a movie and forget about it.

Balance bicycles for toddlers - do/did you have one?

eml

I would like to get a balance bicycle for my son who is 20 months. I was going to buy one for his birthday which isn't until the end of November, but I am considering just going ahead and getting it for him now. I was looking at the Strider, as they seem to have gotten the best reviews at that price point and I won't spend more than that. Do/did you have one for your toddler and were they able to use it before the 2 year age mark listed on the bike? What were your experiences with one?
Not a tricycle - he already has one of those. A balance bike is basically a bicycle without pedals.

Answer
My son got his Strider when he was 18 months. It took him a while to get the hang of it and he started out basically just walking with it (instead of sitting on the seat and pushing with his legs he would not sit on the seat and just walk with it.) It really helped him when we started riding our bikes in the driveway while he was on his Strider. He will be 2 next month and he rides it really well - he has actually started lifting his feet off the ground to balance. Riding his Strider is one of his favorite outdoor activities to do. Plus, it is very light-weight so when he does fall it is very easy for him to pick it up and keep going.

I can understand how some people think it is a waste of money to buy a bike without pedals since I thought the same thing. Some kids at our son's daycare had Strider's and our son really liked them and wanted to ride them so that is when we did some research, talked to some parents and ordered one. I was worried when our son didn't seem interested when we got it but we stuck with it and am very glad we did since he loves it now. The theory behind them is that you will never need training wheels on a bike since kids learn balance on these without having to also learn how to peddle and ride a bike tilted due to training wheels.

We do not regret buying our son his Strider. In my opinion it was well worth the money and a great activity for active kids. When our son outgrows it - which will be several years from now - we'll pass it onto to his cousins.

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I have a 7 month old baby. At what age would be appropriate to go bike riding together?

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Heids

In his own baby seat on the back of my bike ?

Answer
There is no set rule for this but most biking experts will recommend waiting until 1 year of age. This is because infant helmets are only made for and tested on children 1 year and up. Younger children may lack enough neck muscles to support their head and the extra weight of a helmet. Even if they are riding in a bike trailer it still requires good muscle control and balance to keep themselves from jolting around in their seat too much.

You should NEVER let a child ride on a bike without a helmet. Even if you are not used to wearing one it is very important that your child does... they are much more fragile than adults and the statistics on bike related injuries and deaths for children clearly show this. If you don't wear a helmet yourself you should start. I never did until I started taking our 1 year old on bike rides. I wanted to be a good example and actually after a few times I really didn't even notice the helmet anymore.

One more note: make sure you read the instructions with your helmets carefully to get a proper fit. When it comes time to fit one on your child it will help to do it in front of the TV or other distraction since it is not the most pleasant experience for a toddler to feel like they are being poked and tugged at (once it is adjusted they will get used to it quickly, though).

Good luck and happy biking!

Can anyone recommend a baby helmet to soften falls?

tonymonton

We got her one, but she won't wear it because it falls over her eyes. Any suggestions?
for those of us who don't see the wisdom in fall protection, try this.. Fall head first onto a hard floor. If you still don't understand the trauma this causes to a baby, repeat until convinced.

Answer
I have been a mom for 28 years to 4 kids who are now 28, 26, 23, and 10. I am also grandma to an almost 12 month old grandson who has been working to perfect his toddling skills for about a month. Additionally, I have provided child care in my home for 20 years. Unless your baby has a medical condition necessitating a helmet a child who is developing at a normal rate does not need one. Falls and the accompanying bumps, bruises, and cuts are part of the learning experience and while I won't say never, I will say will rarely cause any permanent or long-lasting damage. I have never heard of a child with a permanent injury as the result of a normal childhood fall. Truthfully, most of the falls will cause various facial injuries rather than head bumps anyway. Right now I have my almost 1 year old grandson sitting on my lap with a bump above his eye that he got earlier today when he fell against a toy while practicing his walking skills. It caused a few tears, but some snuggle time and a kiss to make the "owie" better and he was up and trying again. One of my 2 year old daycare children has a scratch on his check no doubt received over the weekend in some toddler mishap. When babies are learning to walk they will naturally put their hands out to balance themselves and thus to catch themselves so they are not landing with a full impact on their heads/faces on the floor nor will they fall straight back, but usually fall on their well-padded little bottoms. In my many years of experience with infants and toddlers, the only child who needed a helmet was not for safety reasons but was a molding helmet to help with plagiocephaly, which is the misshapen head that some infants get. I am sure that you love your daughter very much and want to do what you can to protect her, but a helmet is really unneccessary unless she is riding on the back of your bike in a child seat or in a bicycle trailer. ADDED: It is just a part of life that babies fall while learning to sit or walk. The majority of the time it is not their head that hits the floor first. While learning to sit simply place pillows around her while she practices the balance skills she needs. While learning to walk, most falls are backward to the bottom. Frontwards falls are usually absorbed by the torso and the arms. Bumps to the head are typically not caused by falls but rather by running into something such as a door knob, a coffee table, or the kitchen table.

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What should you keep track of when you bike?

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SoccerFan

For example when your a toddler you only had to keep track of SPEED and DIRECTION. Once you take of the training wheels you also had to manage you BALANCE. Once you get a bike with gears you have to keep track of GEARS. You also have to keep track of speed, brakes, turns, hills descents. What else do you have to keep track of when you bike?


How about when you dirtbike? (This should have more things to keep track off)

Answer
Simple yet complex... EVERYTHING around you. Traffic, pedestrians stepping off the sidewalk, wind direction & speed, the weather, your own condition at the time, what's in the road ahead, what's behind coming up on you. Like I said - everything.

What height should a toddlers bicycle be adjusted to?

z

Should her feet be able to touch the ground or only the pedals. If Her feet should touch the ground. Should it be just her tows or flat feet.
How high should the side wheels be? Should the bike be able to move from side to side, and how much?

Answer
sitting on seat and feet can go flat on ground=perfect height.

By "side wheels" do you men training wheels?
Assuming you do, they should be 4.5 to 5" across (high) and wobbling only a little bit so child gets feel for balancing--to learn how to balance.

(The "wobbling" will occur naturally. You needn't adjust "wobblocity")
Thus: "Training" wheels.
They'll put them on for you at bike shop.

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Has anyone tried one of those Strider toddler bikes - without pedals?

best toddler balance bike image

Rose Arizo

Wondering if it's a fad, or really is easier for toddlers to get the hang of.

Answer
We are planning on getting one for our 2 yr old...my brother in law is a bike mechanic and says that it teaches balance and most kids can even skip the training wheels.

Does all my center pieces have to match?

nomore

I will of corse make them match in a way. There are so many beautiful types I have been seeeing, and I could by color/material make them match. I really hate the same everything, on every table, but don't want to look off in anyway. I would spread everything out, so that it would balance. I guess i was thinking more of the visiual look to it all. Is it possible that i could do that. Or does it sound ....messy?

Answer
gosh no it doesn't sound messy! that actually sounds like fun! as you say you can colour match or material match them, but making each one different or at least several different ones would be very cool.
i would say go for it! ours were a tad different as we were married on the beach and used seashells and candles for centerpieces. so while the candles were all white square pillars the sea-shells were all very different. so each table was a bit unique - and it worked very very well.
friends of ours had a really cool idea, they had photos of themselves from the time they were babies to their rehearsal dinner. their centerpieces were pillar candles in hurricane holders, surrounded with four or five photos per table.
of course every table had different photos-some of him as a baby and her as a toddler, both of them learning to ride their bikes, or her as a cheerleader and him showing off a fish he had caught as a youngster. their halloween costumes, first car, the prom, that kind of thing.
so while having their cocktails people wandered about checking the photos all out - it was a great ice-breaker for the guests and kept everyone occupied for an additional thirty minutes or so prior to the bridal party arriving! everyone loved it!
your idea sounds good - go for it - and btw happy wedding

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