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Feeding

Feeding routine: Meals should be relaxed, safe, and enjoyable family times. Encourage fine-motor skills, such as using a cup or spoon and eating finger foods. Snacking now plays a role in the 3-meals-a-day schedule. Make sure that you’re not teaching your child “grazing”—snacking all day without having any real meals.
Self-feeding: Cover your floor and don’t worry about messes—young children learn from experimenting. Your child should be developing toddler eating skills—biting off small pieces of food, feeding herself, and holding and drinking from a cup. Toddlers learn to like foods by touching, smelling, and mouthing them repeatedly.
Foods to avoid: Avoid small, hard foods like peanuts or popcorn, on which your child can choke, and cut any firm, round food (eg, hot dogs, raw carrots, or grapes) into thin slices.
Set an example: Include your toddler in family meals by providing a high chair or booster seat at table height. Make mealtimes pleasant and companionable.
Encourage conversation. Sharing meals is one of the most influential things a parent can do to get a toddler to try new foods and help a child establish a lifetime of healthy, balanced eating.

Normal behavior: Toddlers tend to “graze.” Her appetite will vary; she will eat a lot one time, and not much the next time.Give your toddler some control: Let your toddler decide what and how much to eat from an assortment of nutritious foods you offer. Trust your child’s ability to know when she is hungry and full. If she asks for more, provide a small, additional portion. If she stops eating, accept her decision.
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Safety Recommendations

Lock away medications and all cleaning, automotive, laundry, and lawn products out of sight and out of reach. Climbing toddlers can reach even high shelves.
Keep your toddler out of rooms where there are hot objects that may be touched, including hot oven doors and heaters, or put a barrier around them.

Now that your toddler is walking, get down on the floor yourself and check for hazards.
Keep plastic bags, latex balloons, or small objects, such as marbles, away from your toddler.

Be sure there are no dangling telephones, electrical, blind, or drapery cords in your home.
Make sure televisions, furniture, and other heavy items are secure so that your child can’t pull them over. If they seem unsteady, anchor bookcases, dressers, and cabinets to the wall and put floor lamps behind other furniture.

Keep sharp objects, such as knives and scissors, out of your toddler’s reach. Keep medications, household cleaners, and poisons locked up.
The rear-facing position provides the best protection for your child’s neck and head in the event of a crash. For optimal protection, your child should remain rear facing until she reaches the highest weight or height allowed for use by the manufacturer of a convertible seat or infant-only seat that is approved for use rear facing to higher weights and heights (up to 30 pounds and 32 inches for infant only and up to 35 pounds and at least 36 inches for convertible seats). Do not switch your child to a forward-facing car safety seat before she is at least 1 year old and weighs at least 20 pounds.

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