Dave and I had a half hour debate over whether or not the term “pre-toddler” is real or just something I made up. I insisted it was a made up term to describe a very real phase, like tween or preteen. Turns out, I’m not the first to use the word. A 1995 Babywise book has the title Parenting Your Pre-Toddler Five to Fifteen Months. I haven’t read the book, but the time frame of the title isn’t really what I mean by “pre-toddler.” In my (admittedly muddled) mind, I imagine the pre-toddler as roughly a one year old, not a baby, not yet a toddler.
Dave says a “not yet a toddler” is a baby. I disagree, hence the ridiculous time wastage that was our debate. While we argued, our baby/pre-toddler/not yet a toddler happily played with some blocks, unaware that she had to fit any made up definition at all.
Why the term “pre-toddler”? For one, I like to make up terms, even if they have already been used in the title of a 16 year old book. I’m unintentionally unoriginal. I also think Amelia is so different from the baby she was 11 months ago that calling her a baby doesn’t accurately describe her state, yet most people wouldn’t call her a toddler. She just started toddling a few days ago, but not enough to give the other toddling toddlers a run for their money (or sandbox).
I still call her “my baby”; however, I imagine I’ll be doing this when she’s 2 or 22. I think some daycares use the term “pre-toddler” as a way to differentiate the nursery from the play-areas, but is that a distinction between baby and toddler or infant and pre-todder? I’m definitely overthinking this linguistic demarcation.
Whatever she’s called, Amelia has entered a new phase of mobility. Not only has she started taking steps, enough to call her walking, but her crawling has moved into warp speed. If she sees something she wants, she’s off like a baby bolt. I’ve had people come up to me in the park and express amazement at her sheer speed. This speed is awesome to watch, but has brought out her devilish personality, which is why I can see a toddler peeking through. When I call her name because she’s heading towards something dangerous or because she has grabbed a particularly menacing stick or rock, she looks back, smiles at me, and takes off! Why that little stinker. The toddler years are going to be fun and frightening.
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{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
I do not normally read or post comments, but I just had to share my experience with vitamin D deficiency. I live in a part of the country that is blessed to have sunshine most of the year, even in the winter when it’s cold and snowy, we usually have sunshine. I also drink a lot of milk, so I had never given a thought to my vitamin D level.
However, two years ago I started to feel, the only way I can describe it, is “unwell”. I was so tired, but not your usual “tired”. Mornings were almost unbearable. I would crawl out of bed, get my kids off to school and the only thing that made me feel okay would be to get back in bed. I literally could not function. I had constant stomach pain, could not eat, my heart would race for no reason. I felt that I could not think straight.
I saw many doctors, had a brain MRI, echocardiogram, EKGs, heart monitoring, tests for gallbladder disease, lab tests, thyroid, etc. If there is a test for it, I got it. It was a very expensive and frustrating time. I was diagnosed with tachycardia (racing heart) and “panic attacks”. I thought I was going crazy and didn’t know if I would ever feel normal and healthy again.
Finally, when I went in for my annual Pap test I explained to my nurse practitioner what had been going on. She ordered some blood tests and without my even knowing it she tested my vitamin D level. When the vitamin D result came back she was shocked. Normal levels are from 30-60, mine was 6. She immediately started me on high dose vitamin D. She and I were both skeptical that this was the only problem, she even told me that she doubted that one thing could be causing so many symptoms.
Within two weeks I started to feel better. Within one month I was completely back to normal. I had my four children tested and their levels were all low too. I take a supplement of 5000 units every day, and give my children vitamin D also every single day. I am finding out my story is not that unusualy. Two people I know (a neighbor and a co-worker) have similar stories, although my case was the most severe. So… give the vitamin D conspiracy another thought, and have your levels tested. If they are normal, there is no reason for supplements; on the other hand…..
Thanks for your comment. I’m really happy to hear vitamin D was able to help you out. I actually don’t doubt that a severe deficiency exists or that taking supplements can help, and your case definitely sounds like one where supplementation was good, but I do realize that research suggests extreme doses are not good for the general population and this is what is trending right now. Perhaps vitamins should be treated like medicine in certain cases. If they were accepted as medicine this would lead to more consistent testing and regulation (which I believe is good) and would lead to less blanket statements about how much the average person should consume. I’m also just curious about how deficiency levels are determined. As you said, you were severely deficient, yet I can’t imagine that all of society would fit this definition. It just doesn’t seem logical and severe deficiency doesn’t seem to explain the 80% jump in vitamin D sales in the last few years. But again, thanks for your comment. I always like to hear different sides of a story and I’m really happy that you are feeling better.
I still call Kayla-Wakalee my baby, and she is almost five. She points out that she is not a baby anymore, except when she wants to be held instead of walking, then she insists she is a baby and cannot walk.