Just because the life of a stay-at-home mom can be stressful doesn’t mean it should be – there are 6 things you should do with your toddler every day to reduce stress, feel happy together, bond and create great memories. Even when the toddlerhood of your 1-year-old, 2-year-old, or 3-year-old is over, keep doing them and stay happy!
At the end of the day – toddlerhood goes by so fast, everything happens so quickly. Nevertheless, it’s one of the most imprinting stages of life, childhood memories we cherish and remember forever.
So, use this fast-paced time and try to do the things you should do with your toddler every day:
- Workout
- Read
- Laugh
- Go outside
- Play
- Cook together
Make them part of your daily schedule and routine and stay sane, happy and healthy!
Things you should do with your toddler every day
1. WORKOUT
How much exercise should a 2 year old get? Well, at least 180 minute a day, if you want to tire them up before bedtime, add one more hour. How much exercise do you need? So much, that you feel good. Let’s put it also that way – exercise, because you don’t want to know what’s neck and back pain. And motherhood is not exactly a wellness treatment. Working out at home with a toddler, is not always easy for a stay-at-home mom, if you want to have a full workout. However, it’s still possible and you can spread out your workout during the day.
If you need some ideas for physical activities for toddlers, check out these gross motor activities, most of them indoors.
If you need some great ideas, check out our world-famous 39 Indoor Gross Motor Activities and 12 Physical Activities your toddler should do every day.
If you need some workout ideas at home for yourself check out these ones, that I use:
- 7 Days Barre Workout at home – Her Highness Hungry Me
- 7 Days Yoga Plan – Her Highness Hungry Me
- Yoga for Beginners
- Free Workout Plans by Beauty Bites.org
2. READ
You’ve heard it thousands of times probably – read to your toddler every day. At some point they will start to read to you their favourite books and that’s not just adorable, but the best way to learn reading.
3. LAUGH
Laughing makes us happy and that’s something we need every day. When your toddler laughs, make them laugh even more, because laugh is contagious and we all need lots of it daily.
4. GO OUTSIDE
Do toddlers need to go out everyday? YES! So, do you! No matter what happens, set your priorities right and go outside! Rain or shine. You both need fresh air. Sad, but true – studies have found out that toddlers and elderly spend almost 90% of their time indoors. I suspect that those studies did not involve stay-at-home moms and office people, because sometimes it feels that way. Kind of I didn’t know that our lifestyle was called quarantine. So, try to spend outdoors more than 2-3 hours a day.
5. PLAY
How many hours a day should you play with your toddler? As much as they need and you can. To play with a child is to love a child, so let’s play. Sometimes, I don’t feel like playing, thinking about other stuff. But then I remind myself, that I need to be in the now and share. Playing and inventing activities will make you not only feel creative, alive but also happier and relaxed. Be the mom, you wanted always to have.
If you need some super easy, no prep, no mess toddler activities ideas check out our toddler activities and toddler videos.
6. COOK TOGETHER
We love cooking together. True, it gets more messier, but cooking is one of the best ways to teach your toddler several things – math, measurement, estimation, time, temperature, scents, taste, patience and practice fine motor skills. So, do it daily – keep it simple, easy and quick. If you need some easy and quick toddler meal ideas to cook together with your toddler, check out these one here.
7. NAP
And one more thing – if you are tired – nap! Sleep when your toddler sleeps instead of feeling guilty and thinking about how much you have to do! You need it and your toddler needs a mom who is rested and happy!
For sure, we all have too many things on our plates and we need to chose wisely where you want to invest our time.
So, between cleaning for an hour while my toddler naps and napping with my toddler, my choice is lately to nap. Simply because my experience has taught me that when my well rested toddler wakes up full with energy in a sparkling clean home, the sparkling clean home will be gone in less than an hour and I will be tired. Instead, if we both rest, I feel more relaxed and then when we get up and we can clean up together.
CREATE AND KEEP MEMORIES
How long can a toddler remember a person and things? Can a 2 year old remember things at all? Toddlers as we all know are well capable of forming memories in their early years. You probably also remember things from your toddlerhood. But sadly, even if we can remember things for longer periods of time, early childhood memories fade easier.
So, try to keep them. It’s one of the greatest gifts you can make to your little one – to know how their life has started, what they did, what did they love doing, eating, saying. What was their favourite toy, blanket, the favourite activity…
If you need some inspiration check out our Printables Toddler Books and Toddler Schedules, that help you record in a easy and fun way, all important things about your toddler’s early years.
Here is also a non-editable daily routine for some inspiration how to structure your day! Download in our free printable section.
Happy Playing!
Still, wondering what are the things your toddler should do every day? Read here!
