Already the 21st month! Baby is more and more like a child: agile, almost clean, voluble, and maybe even a bit capricious! This is normal development at 21 months. We take stock with Doctor Noémie Nathan, pediatrician in Montreuil.
At 21 months, Your child is more and more autonomous, And he lets you know. He absolutely wants to do things alone, like a big one: an attitude to encourage, while having an eye on him constantly to avoid the risk of accidents! What are the different stages of its development at 21 months ? Discover the advice of Doctor Noémie Nathan, pediatrician in Montreuil, to best accompany your baby this month!
What awakening for a 21 -month -old baby?
Your 21 month old child East increasingly agile with his body. He now knows how to climb the stairs alone – but still under the supervision of an adult of course – and begins to want to take them like you, in a standing position. He also masters his gestures perfectly: he knows how to launch a balloon, for example above his shoulder, or shoot in it. Above all, he wants to do things alone, in his own way.
Behavior at 21 months, baby makes whims?
“Above all, do not be ashamed, baby will soon integrate your embarrassment and force the crisis until you give up!”
When it is prevented in its different companies more or less daredevil, baby stings anger. Make him understand that some things are not negotiable, such as giving hand in the street because it is about security. On the other hand, for other things, such as choosing a yogurt or a scent of jam, it is also important to let him express his opinion and to listen to him. A baby who makes whims seeks to assert himself, and it goes for him through the opposition. Rather than taking it head -on by trying to establish your authority by constraint and reprimand it, speak calmly, with the firmness of those to whom it takes more to be impressed. Above all, do not be ashamed, baby will soon join your embarrassment and force the crisis until you give up! Stay Zen, diversion, offer an alternative or ask him to explain the reasons for his anger to you: the main thing is that he feels respected in his individuality, and not only subject to your decisions which he still thinks completely arbitrary.
Cleanliness at 21 months
The average age to stop layers is between two and three yearsbut precocity will especially depend on the physiological and psychological maturity of baby. At 21 months, you can introduce it, gently, to go on the pot. Offer him to sit on it to tame it, and even start a game to divert the attention. A pee will necessarily occur at some point, and it is at this point that he will concretely understand the use of this strange seat. Baby may be afraid and feels as dispossessed of a part of his body: this fear is completely normal, but if it is paralyzing, do not insist. Baby is not yet ready. Let it come back on its own. He will do it sooner, after a long assimilation and understanding of the process, and his interest!
Refusal to sleep and night awakenings
21 months, It is the age of all discoveries but also opposition age ! Layers and nights can therefore become a little difficult. Baby resists, he cries, gets up, calls you multiple times. If it has just passed to the bed of large, rest reassured, this phase is transient. It is for the child a great change, it may need time to get used to it. Anyway, show yourself as firm as possible, while remaining benevolent. There is no point in screaming, this could make the situation invented. He must understand that it is not he who decides. Be careful at his pace, a child who goes to bed too late, exhausted, can find it difficult to sleep.
Make him accept the nap
Baby reluctantly reluctantly relies on napping, yet 21 months, he still needs it. The key to his good falling asleep is in the constancy of this step, which must be daily and non -negotiable. Unsurprisingly on the course of his day, baby agrees much better to go to bed, knowing that there is no alternative or possibility of being given in. A ritual which must ideally intervene at a fixed time. A baby who has well integrated his rhythm does not oppose resistance, on the contrary even, it may well be that it is he who, tired in advance, goes by himself to find his comforter! On the other hand, do not put it in full dark: a nap by definition is done during the day, and baby must be able to make this difference. Also, it is better not to get him used to assimilating darkness and sleeping because at the slightest change, especially on vacation, the nap may make you spend a dirty quarter of an hour!
Baby’s language is refined, he starts to pronounce his first sentences short and simple. He also knows how to recognize and name objects on his little books: a cat, a cake, a house … At this age, some children are already talking very well, others take their time. Try not to compare your child with his other little comrades, everyone evolves at their own pace.
Side toys, Baby loves construction gamesthe bricks … and all the imitation games (playing the merchant, playing the doctor …). He likes to participate in the daily life and in the life of the house: do not hesitate to solicit him so that he puts the table, that he puts his toys, that he puts his things in the dirty laundry basket … He also likes to move and empty the furniture, and search in the bags!
What are the size and weight of a baby at 21 months?
- If your baby is a boy, 21 months, It measures on average 85 cm and weighs between 11 and 12 kg.
- If it is a girl, she measures on average between 83 and 84 cm and weighs between 10 and 11 kg approximately.
The health of a 21 month old baby
Autism and diagnosis
There is no particular health meeting at 21 months, but it is often around this age that autism, or a autism spectrum disorderwill be diagnosed. The pediatrician will be particularly attentive to several signs, the first being a regression in the acquisitions. A child who developed completely normally will gradually backtrack. A very shy, introverted child, who is not in communication or language, flees visual exchange, has stereotypical gestures or repetitive games, all this will arouse the suspicions of the doctor. The child can simply be slightly out of step and careful monitoring for the next 6 months will determine it. But you should not wait to start care, the balance sheet must be programmed quickly. You know your baby better than no one so trust if you have any doubts and quickly express them to your child’s pediatrician.
In case of gastro or strong diarrhea
At 21 months, the major risk is mainly that of dehydration. Make sure baby regularly takes small amounts of liquid, the ideal being a rehydration solute diluted in water, or rice water. But if baby seems to be empty, that he seems exhausted, or that he has no more tears to cry for example, an emergency consultation is essential.
Fever
The fever in a child is very random. Some will very well tolerate it at 40 °, when others at 38.2 ° will be completely apathetic or present breathing difficulties. Thus in the event of fever, much more than the number to which it culminates, it is the associated symptoms which determine the possible severity of the situation. It is then necessary to analyze the tolerance of a child at a fever, that is to say his coloring (marbled or with blue extremities), his breathing (short breath, intercostal draw), and his state of consciousness (exhaustion, prostration, weakness) to go to the emergency room, whatever the height of the fever.
“In case of fever, it is above all the associated symptoms that determine the possible severity of the situation.”
What is the diet of a baby at 21 months?
Your child has his little table habits: he likes to eat the same dishes, at the same time, on the same plate … Do not contrast it, but try to vary his diet every day by offering him different foods, and cooking them in different ways. Respect his appetite, And do not force him to finish his plate when he does not want to: some days, he is hungry than others, just like you!
