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© BOPINION THE J = RARELY DOES A : TODDLER OCCUPY A 8 SINGLE POSITION IN = SPACE FOR MORE = THAN ABOUT FIVE SECONDS, WRITES GRAHAM HOOKEY Ithas been a while forme since I had real, live tod- dlers living with me, soa re- cent visit with a two-year- old grand-nephew ignited a slew of old memories. ittedly, I enjoyed when my kids were toddlers —so full of energy, so full of enthusiasm an full o! curiosity. In fairness, I went to work most days and hada break from them and thus my memories of total enjoy- ment may not be fully matched by my wife's mem- ories of incessant toddler behaviour. Unlike the infant, who spends every ig hour lying ina bed or bassinet in- | Thursday, April 6, 2023 | ry GRAHAM HOOKEY Column tegrating new information into a developing brain, a toddler has mobility. The quest f for new information discoveries is just as anccistent as an infant, but everything is now a moving target and the motion is continuous. Rarely does a toddler oc- cupy a single position in space for more than about. five seconds. There are only two states of being for a tod- dler — asleep and running. It is a time when parents question every furniture purchase they ever made in terms of child safety. The glass coffee table is the first thing heading to storage. Despite the many toys and stuffed TO LEARN HOW TO SUBMIT YOUR OWN CONTENT VISIT WATERLOOCHRONICLE.CA OYS OF PESKY TODDLERS fall a toddler, phere) is extended to every single item in and arounda house. True child-proofing for a toddler requires locking way anything of value that is breakable, bendable, sharp, able to be swallowed or able to be thrown through windows or mir- rors. And don't think, for a second, that putting those things a bit higher than the toddler can reach is a good strategy. It is remarkable how quickly the average toddler learns to climb use other pieces of fui. access what they have become fixated with getting their hands on. The lightbulbs in the ceiling lights might be safe, but nothing else is, and what was safe yesterday may be vulnerable today. Reassess- ing child: proofing steps is a a cautious parent's 's routine. As speech it improves, t the first word of "NO!" is “It does take a lot of adult energy to keep up with the toddler energy in a house.” followed by the develop- ment ofa string of questions about everything, all day. Toddlers are full of won- der and are formulating their understanding of the world around them con- the sky is blue than they do, it won't stop them from ask- ing you, over and over, until you give them some viable answer, at least until they are old enough to use Goo- gle, at which point your ex- pertise about everything will be brought into ques- tion! It does take a lot of adult energy to keep up with the toddler energy in a house. My Personal strategy was to spend as much time out- doors as sossible, where open spaces and new expe- riences could help stimu- late curiosity and burn off some of the Physical energy: It seemed to take some pres- sure off of the indoor explo. rai dangerous tl mention provided some va- riety in the asked and an- swered repetitive ques- tions. Not only that, but it scored me a lot of brownie points with my wife who, once I'd taken our toddlers outside, would sit on a couch and just revel in the motionless silence. Graham Hookey is the author of Parenting Is A Team Sport (Amazon Books) and can be reached t This newspaper, published every lay, is a division ofthe Metroland Media Group Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Torstar Corporation. The Metroland family of newspapers is comprised of more than 70 community publications across Ontario. This newspaper is a member of the National NewsMedia Council. Complainants are urged to bring their concems write The National NewsMedia Council, Suite 200, 890 Yonge St., IN M4W 2H2. Phone: 416-340-1981 Web: www.mediacouncil.ca nn¢e Aocna Nesektaiacounet editorial@waterloochronicle.ca Pcie ican waterlonchronicte @wichrot WHO WE ARE Publisher and Chief Executive Officer Neil Oliver Vice President, Conte Community and Operations Dana Robbins Director of Content Lee Ann Waterman Regional General Manager rreira rtising Representatives in Bodanka, Matt Miller, Lisa Humphreys, Cassandra Dellow YOUR VOICE AND LETTERS TO THE EDITOR ALLOW YOU TO SHARE YOUR VOICE IN YOUR COMMUNITY, WRITES ROBYN WILKINSON It's about trust. Our rela- tionship with our readers is built on transparency, hon- esty and integrity. As such, e launched a trust initiative to tell you who we are and how and why we do what we do. This column is g bart of that project. 3 Everyone has an opin- 6 ion. And it's likely clear § from your Bersonal social media p: it some of 2 those opinions are louder 3 ROBYN WILKINSON Column than others. With the ease and use of social media platforms, you can share your voice with your friends and family near and far, and read opin- ions about the town or city you live in around the orld. But with the ever-power- ful algorithm, you're prob- ably only really sharing your opinion with friends and family, those who fol- OPINION low you and being swept up ina limited world of views. 0 the many prob- lems with social media is that it entrenches our con- firmation bias. By reading mostly what is on our feed, we see what we want to see. We read what we want to read. If your views are lib- eral, you will follow w people with simi and they will Tollow 9 you. “t you have a conservative per- spective, then your feed is most likely to feature that point of view, and the peo- ple who receive your posts are on the same page.A let- the websites of your local trusted news organization, such the Waterloo Chronicle, Cambridge MATTER Times, New Hamburg Inde- pendent and Guelph Mer- cury Tribune, helps to reach people who may and those who may not agree with you and thus, ak healthy com- munity dialogue. It waa you the opportu- nity to share your voice n the community you live and have a conversation with your eighbor some of those who don't agree with you, and that's OK. Everyone's voice and ideas, presented with re- hlight a problem you see in your lo- cal government at any lev- el? You are certain to have the ear of politicians when you pen a letter to the edi- tor. Government staffcomb through our pages for any mention of their depart- ment or initiatives or pro- jects. And other citizens with similar problems may find solutions due to your letter.We want to give youa public voice beyond your social media feed. Keep it respectful, ike your point clear and be concise and don't forget to include your first and last name and community of resi- dence. We do not publish anonymous letters. Robyn Wilkinson is the managing editor of. Met- burg. Reach her at rwilkin- son@metro land.com. welcome your ques- ents. committee at trust@met- roland.com. Robyn Wilkinson ‘Online Editor Loraine Centeno News eel Ned Bekavat Reporter Bill Jackson Director Creative Services Paul Gostlin CONTACT US Waterloo Chronicle 219 Labrador Dr. Suite 203, Waterloo, On., 4M8 Phone: 519-886-2830 Web: www,waterloochronicle.ca Letters to the editor Allletters must be fewer than 320 words and include your name and telephone number for verification purposes. 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